Kagome's Voice and Inuyasha's Love
by Nobody Hekele
Summary: Inuyasha hears Kagome singing a lullaby to Shippo one night and begins to realize his feelings for her, but can he tell her he loves her? Kagome's penpal Hekele and her friend Kachie are there too, can they win Sesshoumaru and Koga's hearts? Last chappie
1. Her Voice

Kagome's Voice and Inuyasha's Love  
  
By: Hekele  
  
This is an InuKag and MirSan fic.to all you Kikyo lovers and supporters.sorry.hopefully if I get enough reviews on this story I will write more chapters and eventually get rid of that pathetic excuse of a clay pot.but even if I don't, I want you to know.I HATE HER GUTS!!! (Wait.do clay pots have guts? @_@?)  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of the other characters in his show.I am just a crazed fan who found herself writing a fic.what else is new???  
  
*Italics* = thoughts  
  
" " = speech  
  
Her Voice  
  
Inuyasha was sitting in his favorite tree just outside of Kaede's village staring at the Bone Eater's Well. He wished Kagome would just come back already, he didn't want to lose any more of his demonic dignity by going after her through the well again. *Is that really why I won't go? Or do I just.maybe.miss her?* Inuyasha quickly shook off that last thought and mentally scolded himself for it. After all, he loved Kikyo, not Kagome, he loved Kikyo.didn't he?  
  
**************************  
  
Sango looked at him and shook her head. Inuyasha had been in that tree staring at the well all day. She thought it was cute at first but now found it a bit annoying.  
  
*Why doesn't he just go after her already? Everyone knows he wants to.* she thought to herself. She walked back towards the village when Shippo ran up and jumped into her arms, she smiled at the little kitsune, until she saw an angry monk heading her way.  
  
*Oh great.now you've done it Shippo.what happened this time???* she thought as the kitsune crawled onto her shoulder and tried to hide behind her long, brown ponytail. The monk, Miroku, looked fairly angry and kept coming, seemingly  
  
ready to knock Shippo's little head off.  
  
"Miroku? What's wrong? You seem a little.upset," Sango asked him politely, taking a step back as he kept coming after the kitsune.  
  
Completely ignoring Sango, Miroku walked within three feet of her and the kitsune and glared at Shippo, "Shippo, you had better stop hiding behind Sango.it won't save you!"  
  
"Miroku.what has happened to make you so angry? What has Shippo done?" Sango asked more firmly, a bit alarmed by Miroku's temper. He looked to her exasperatedly.  
  
"He ruined a perfectly good conversation with a lovely young lady and-"  
  
"I told him not to grope anyone when I was around because I think it's sick and that I didn't want to watch him be an idiot for once," Shippo interrupted him. Miroku froze as he saw Sango's hand twitch and reach for her boomerang, which as always was strapped to her back. He stepped away from her as she took a step towards him. Shippo got the hint and jumped off her shoulder and ran towards the well.  
  
"HENTAI!!! How dare you chase after him for your stupidity!!! Wait until he tells Kagome!!! She's going to beat you worse than I am!!!" Sango yelled as she gave chase once again to the perverted monk.  
  
****************  
  
Inuyasha half smiled to himself as his sensitive ears picked up the argument between his friends, he could picture Miroku's face as Sango gave chase to him, it served him right for being so perverted, and it served as great entertainment. Inuyasha was so caught up in the yelps of pain and the sounds of a bone boomerang hitting something hard, (probably Miroku's head,) that he didn't notice Shippo climb up the tree and onto his branch.  
  
"So, wha'cha doing up here?" Shippo asked, nearly giving Inuyasha a heart attack. After regaining his balance he glared at the kitsune.  
  
"Why the hell did you do that?!? What concern is it why I'm up here?!? Go away!" he yelled as he tossed the kitsune off the tree. Luckily, Shippo landed on his feet and wailed in anger.  
  
"I'm gonna tell Kagome when she comes back and she's gonna 'sit' you to the  
  
earth's core!" The kitsune ran off in the direction of the village, very upset with his only father figure for being so mean to him.  
  
Inuyasha looked as the kitsune ran off towards the village, a bit of true sorrow hidden in his gruff face. *Oh great.I didn't mean to toss him.he just annoyed me and it's what popped into my head first. Damn it, Kagome's gonna break my back with all the 'sits' I'm bound to get.* Suddenly, Inuyasha caught the whiff of a familiar scent and his breath caught in his throat as it grew stronger. *She's here.* he couldn't help but smile, he hadn't had to drag her back this time, for some reason, he was glad when she returned on her own. It meant that she wanted to be here. Inuyasha forgot all about Shippo's threat for the moment and jumped from the tree towards the well. Upon landing, he saw her trying to climb out. Trying hard to fight a smile, he lifted her out with ease. When met with her smile and thanks he nearly blushed. Nearly.  
  
"What took you so long wench? You said that you would be back yesterday! You are beyond late!" he yelled at her with false anger. Actually, he was quite happy that she had returned at all, he had been afraid that she was angry with him for some reason and had figured on giving her time to cool down before forcing her to come back yet again.  
  
Kagome glared at him, "Sit!" she yelled. Inuyasha kissed the dirt much to his despair with a thud and an angered growl. Kagome hmph'ed and began walking away from him as the prayer beads began to wear off. When he could move again, Inuyasha bounded after her.  
  
"What was that for?!? What did I do? You're the one who's late!" he yelled at her.  
  
Kagome fought the urge to 'sit' him again and bit her tongue. She hadn't wanted to come back quite yet, but knew she had to or Inuyasha would have dragged her back as usual. She had wanted one more day to relax and catch up with her homework but settled for bringing it with her back to the Feudal Era. It was making her already heavy backpack much heavier and she was in a bad mood to begin with.  
  
"Don't call me 'wench', I have a name, use it." she said calmly but coldly.  
  
Inuyasha glared at her but kept quiet, not wanting to anger her further.  
  
*Why is she so angry? I always call her wench but usually she just yells at me.what did I do to get her this mad?* He pondered over her mood for a moment, waiting for some indication that she had acknowledged his presence next to her, but was denied one. He began to feel a bit bad, he must have really done something this time.  
  
Kagome walked on towards the village, forcing herself not to apologize to the hanyou walking silently next to her. She really didn't want to talk to him right then, only to greet her other friends and enjoy a bit of time with them before the slave-driving Inuyasha bound them to shard hunting the next morning. She knew that they had to get all the shards, but she wished she didn't have to make every visit to the Feudal Era a painful, bloody adventure.  
  
Upon reaching the village, they were greeted by Kaede, who immediately noticed Kagome's mood and raised an eyebrow to Inuyasha, who shrugged. Kagome walked into Kaede's hut and greeted her friends. Shippo ran into her arms and gave her a huge hug as Miroku attempted to give her one as well but missed when she side-stepped out of his reach, knowing very well of his intentions. Sango smiled at her friend and was greeted with one back, seeing as Kagome's arms were full with Shippo. Inuyasha entered the hut and Shippo remembered about his revenge on Inuyasha for what he had done earlier.  
  
"Kagome, Inuyasha tossed me out of the tree when I asked him what he was doing up there." he said with false tears. Inuyasha remembered too late what had happened and was 'sat' by Kagome 10 times in a row and had created quite a large dent in Kaede's home.it blended well with the other dents he had left from other 'sits'.  
  
When he was able to stand up, Inuyasha saw Kagome cradling Shippo in her arms as he pretended to be in minor pain. Inuyasha wanted to toss him again until he noticed Kagome's expression, she looked as though she knew Shippo was faking it, but decided to hug him anyway. Somehow, this annoyed Inuyasha a bit less.  
  
**********************  
  
While everyone was sleeping, Kagome quietly got some of her homework out of her backpack and started to do some of her math problems. She was about half way through them when Shippo woke up and crawled into her lap.  
  
"What are those?" he asked quietly.  
  
"They are math problems, I'm doing some of my homework so that I won't have more later when I go back to my time." She replied just as quietly. Shippo yawned and she smiled. She put down her homework and cradled Shippo again.  
  
"Hush now, my baby, be still love don't cry.  
  
Sleep like you're rocked by the stream.  
  
Sleep and remember, my lullaby, and I'll  
  
be with you, when you dream." she sang to him soothingly.  
  
Inuyasha's ears twitched as he faintly heard Kagome's voice. He opened his eyes a little and looked at her, she was cradling a sleepy Shippo who was visibly trying to fall back asleep. A smile tugged at Inuyasha's lips as he witnessed the scene. Shippo wasn't all that bad, he was just young. Inuyasha could see why Kagome cared about him so much, because Inuyasha himself did as well, though no one on Heaven, Hell, or Earth would ever hear him admit it. His ears perked as Kagome picked up the next verse of her song.  
  
"Hush now, my baby, be still love don't cry.  
  
Sleep as I'm singing to you.  
  
I see you smiling, so peaceful and calm,  
  
And holding you I'm smiling too."  
  
Inuyasha's own eyes began to grow heavy as Kagome sang her song. *Her voice is so beautiful.* he thought to himself. Kagome went on as Inuyasha secretly listened.  
  
"Sleep and remember, this river. lullaby.  
  
and I'll be with you, when you dream.  
  
And I'll be with you.when you dream."  
  
She finished, allowing her voice to fade at the end. Kagome smiled as Shippo curled up into her as he fell back asleep. She gave him a kiss on the forehead and set him down next to her as she laid back down in her sleeping bag. She smiled to herself. *I always loved that song, ever since I saw that movie.it always calmed me down when I listened to it when I was stressed out, I'm glad I'm not the only one who enjoys it.* she thought as she watched Shippo sleep. Kagome closed her eyes and tried to go back to sleep, unaware of a certain hanyou's gaze.  
  
Inuyasha allowed himself to smile a bit when he saw her go back to sleep. He listened as her breathing became even, meaning she was deep in sleep. Inuyasha gazed at her for a moment, thinking over what he had just heard. It was a touching sight, even he had to admit to that. He also had no idea that Kagome could sing so beautifully, he felt calmer somehow after hearing her song, like he was the one safely in her embrace instead of Shippo. He closed his eyes in an attempt to sleep, but found that his heart was racing with thoughts of Kagome. He tried to shrug it off, but the thoughts of her kept coming, thought's of when they first met, thoughts of their first embrace.as Inuyasha fell asleep, he let his thoughts continue. *Kagome.*  
  
*Me* So.what did y'all think???  
  
*Lawyers* We think you forgot something.  
  
*Me* What did I forget?  
  
*Lawyers* What about the song???  
  
*Me* +_+? Huh?  
  
*Lawyers* Do you own the song??? It wasn't in your disclaimer.  
  
*Me* 0_0; Oops!!!!!! NO, I DON'T OWN THE SONG, I'M SORRY I DIDN'T ADD IT IN THE DISCLAIMER.Hey, why are the cops here?  
  
*Lawyers* Since you didn't add the song in the disclaimer.we called the cops.  
  
*Cops* Yep.you're goin' downtown missy.  
  
*Me* 0_o? But why?!? I just said that I didn't own the song!!!  
  
*Cops & Lawyers * Too bad.so sad.may the power of the judge be with you.  
  
*Me* But, but, but.....Judges hate me!!!!!!!!!!!! Fine.it had better be judge Judy then. *Cops & Lawyers * Sorry.it isn't.you're going to juvee.muahahahahaha!!!!  
  
*Me* NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
*Lawyers* Kachie Runa.you're in charge of the story now.  
  
*Kachie* (blinks eyes) I just got here.what's going on.why are you taking Hekele to juvee?  
  
*Lawyers* She forgot to add a song in her disclaimer.so we are putting you in charge of the story.  
  
*Kachie* Ummm...ok...help...  
  
*Me* NOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You can't give her my story!!!  
  
*Lawyers* Well, if you can pay us $3,000,000,000 then you can go free.  
  
*Me* (grabs check book and growls as she writes the check for $3,000,000,000) Here..don't spend it all in one place.  
  
*Lawyers* Thank you. (Lawyers leave, followed by upset cops.)  
  
*Kachie* Where the HELL did you get all that money?!?!  
  
*Me* (plays with the collar of her turtleneck as if very warm) Umm, well, you see.I don't have to tell you.  
  
*Kachie* (grins) you stole it from the school board didn't you? No wonder we have had less teachers and more fights and total mayhem at school.We salute you Hekele! (chuckles evilly) Now to implicate my plans to take over the school , then McDonalds.AND THEN THE WORLD!!! MUAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!  
  
*Me* (grins) Let's go then, the world awaits.tell them what to do while we're gone if they want me to keep updating.  
  
*Kachie* Oh yeah.R&R, or we will come after you! 


	2. Hicups and Hekele

Kagome's Voice and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Thanks for the reviews everyone it's nice to know you like my story! Ok, this chapter may be more funny than fluffy, because Inuyasha gets a case of the hic- ups! But I promise, there will be some fluff. Well, here we go!!!  
  
Disclaimer: No, I still don't own Inuyasha.or anything else that I write about, damn it! ************************************************************************ Chapter 2: Hic-ups and Hekele.  
  
Inuyasha woke up the next morning only to find that he was alone in the  
  
hut. Inuyasha looked around for a moment as if to confirm this and frowned.  
  
*Where is everyone? I'm usually the first one up in the morning.Kaede-hag probably has them working in the garden or something.* he thought to himself as he got up and stretched. He remembered hearing Kagome sing to Shippo the previous night and smiled inwardly. He had had a good night's sleep for once, and was in a pretty decent mood too. Inuyasha made his way outside only to find Kagome talking to a very upset looking Sango. Kagome kept nodding to her friend, and then got a slightly annoyed look in her face, as did Sango.  
  
The two glanced to their right and saw an unconscious Miroku with a really large handprint on his face, Inuyasha shook his head knowingly at what had happened. Kagome saw Inuyasha and smiled at him as she shrugged, guessing correctly at his unsaid question: Will Miroku ever learn? Shippo pounced on Inuyasha's head a moment later and was quite surprised when he didn't get hit in the head for it.  
  
"Watch it runt," was all Inuyasha said. Inuyasha noticed the kitsune's confused look and sat him on the ground as he jumped into a tree.  
  
Shippo stared at the hanyou for a moment and shrugged it off, thinking he was still too sleepy to want to hit anyone yet. Kagome walked over to the tree that Inuyasha had jumped into as Sango and the now conscious Miroku followed Shippo back into the hut, a bit confused themselves. Kagome, however, was a bit worried about Inuyasha; he never passed up a chance to get even with Shippo, ever.  
  
"Inuyasha? Are you ok? You seem a bit...happy. What's up?" she asked him. Inuyasha stared at her for a moment, and then decided not to tell her about hearing her sing, for his dignity's sake.  
  
"What wench? Can't I be nice to the whelp once in a while?!" he retorted. Upon seeing Kagome's face scrunch up at the word 'wench', Inuyasha quickly grabbed to the tree for dear life as she screamed at him.  
  
"Sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, sit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. When the dust cleared, there was a huge crater and a few broken branches where the tree had been. Inuyasha crawled out of the crater with a few twigs in his hair. Before he could say anything, howling could be heard along with a string of laughter.  
  
"Mutt face, when will you learn to show MY woman some respect? Especially since she can take you down with a single word! Ha ha ha ha ha!" Koga howled with laughter at Inuyasha's appearance and stupidity.  
  
"No one asked you flee-bag, and why do you keep calling Kagome YOUR woman, she doesn't like you!" Inuyasha growled, suddenly standing between Kagome and Koga, "What are you doing here anyway?!" he asked, not really caring 'why' as long as Koga left as soon as possible.  
  
"Hello Koga, this certainly is a surprise, what brings you here?" Kagome asked politely. She really hadn't expected to see him, nor had she really wanted to, but she would put up with him for a bit. Koga ignored Inuyasha's comment and sped around him to Kagome, put his arm around her waist, and gave her a little squeeze, causing Inuyasha to get really mad.  
  
"Since when did I need a reason to see my love? What kind of mate would I be if I left you alone with mutt-face for too long?" he said, nuzzling her cheek a bit, causing Kagome to blush and Inuyasha to boil.  
  
"Who the hell to you think you are touching her like that?!? And she's not your mate!" he said, pulling Tetsuagia, (sp? sorry!) out of it's sheath. Kagome pulled away from Koga, who looked like a little lost puppy without her in his arms, and stared him in the eyes.  
  
"Koga, for the millionth time, I am NOT your mate, and I'm sorry, but I don't love you back, so please stop coming around if all it is to do is try to make me love you." she said sternly, finally able to speak without blushing. Koga was sweet, but he seemed as dense as Hojo when it came down to it. Inuyasha wore a proud, victorious grin on his face which only Koga seemed to see, and it made him turn red with both anger and embarrassment that he'd been turned down yet again. He began to run to the forest as he spoke to Kagome.  
  
"Kagome, my love, I will never lose hope that you will one day come to see your feelings for me. I will leave you in mutt-face's care for the time, but I will be back for you on-"  
  
CRASH!!!  
  
Kagome tried hard to stifle a laugh and Inuyasha rolled on the ground in fits of laughter as Koga tried to calmly climb out of the crater that Inuyasha had formed only moments before. Kagome lost it and openly laughed as Koga stumbled and fell back into the hole. Inuyasha had never laughed so hard in his life as his rival finally managed to get out of the hole and run into the forest, face flushed full of embarrassment.  
  
Hearing Inuyasha's laughter, Shippo and Sango exited the hut to see what had happened. Upon seeing BOTH Inuyasha and Kagome laughing, they were very confused. If Kagome was laughing then Inuyasha was usually blushing like a madman because he did something stupid, and if Inuyasha was laughing then he got 'sat', so why were they both laughing? Noticing a crater where a tree used to be, Sango got worried.  
  
*Why are they both laughing when Inuyasha was just 'sat'? He NEVER laughs about that.*  
  
"Uhh, guys? What's so funny?" Sango asked worriedly, thinking that her friends may very well be under some sort of spell to act so.'humorous' all of a sudden.  
  
"K-K-Koga.," Inuyasha managed to say between the laughter, he was now crying from laughing so hard.  
  
This got Sango's attention, "Koga? You are both laughing at Koga? Did he put a spell on you or something, because this just doesn't fit."  
  
"Yeah Kagome, why are you laughing at Koga? You never laugh at Koga, he's not that funny, just really stupid." Shippo said plainly. This made the two laugh harder.  
  
"Exactly! Stupid flee-bag doesn't know to watch where he's going." Inuyasha said, finally able to calm down.  
  
Sango took another look at the crater and noticed how it seemed like one end was a bit caved in. *Almost like someone fell in.Wait a minute.* "Did Koga fall in the hole?" she asked. This sent Kagome and Inuyasha off again. Sango smiled, no longer worried, she herself wished that she could've seen it. Shippo caught on as well and pouted, he also wanted to see Koga fall into the hole.  
  
"That's what he gets for- *hic* Huh? What the- *hic-up*" Inuyasha held his chest in mild pain as he gasped for air, wondering what was happening to him. Kagome laughed at him for a moment, walked over and patted his back. She enjoyed the confused look on his face.  
  
"Those are hic-ups! You get them when you laugh too hard or when you cry too much. They may hurt a bit, but they will go away eventually." she said, trying to comfort him. Inuyasha gave her a look of pure and utter agony, his chest was really starting to hurt from all these 'hic-ups'.  
  
"Well, how do I *hic* get rid of *hic* these *hic* things?!? *hic* They *hic* hurt!" Inuyasha complained. Shippo took this opportunity to have some fun.  
  
"Inuyasha's a baby, he can't even handle a few little hic-ups!!! Even I can take hic-ups!" he said teased. Shippo walked up to him and stuck his tongue out. Inuyasha was about to take a swipe at him when another fit of hic-ups took over. Inuyasha held his chest again in pain and Kagome began to feel sorry for him. Sango fought a small fit of laughter, picked up Shippo, and walked back towards the hut, winking at Inuyasha and Kagome meanwhile. They nodded in understanding, and Inuyasha was grateful.  
  
"Come on Shippo, why don't you help me and Kaede cook breakfast? It would get done faster." she taunted, knowing that the kitsune's stomach would take over within seconds. Shippo nodded to her and allowed her to take him back into the hut.  
  
Inuyasha's hic-ups continued and Kagome continued to pat his back as he gasped for air between them. Inuyasha wouldn't admit it, but he rather enjoyed it when she did that, the hic-ups, however, he could do without.  
  
" *Hic* Kagome! *hic* How am I *hic* supposed to *hic* get rid of *hic* these *hic* things?! *hic* I can hardly *hic* breathe and they *hic* are really starting to *hic* hurt! *hic*," he complained. Kagome knowingly nodded her head, took his hand, and led him to the nearest stream. Inuyasha blushed at her touch and was happy when she didn't notice. He was almost brave enough to squeeze her hand back, but his 'sensible' side took over and he forced himself to look away from their clasped hands.  
  
"Sometimes if you drink enough water, the hic-ups will go away. Let's try it!" she said cheerily.  
  
"*hic* Feh.*hic*," Inuyasha said, but it's mean demeanor was ruined by his hic-ups. ************************ At the stream:  
  
Inuyasha drank from the stream and happily enjoyed Kagome's company, (though he tried his damnedest not to show it,) until he realized that it wasn't working.  
  
"Ka-*hic*-gome, this *hic* isn't *hic* working! Now what *hic* do I *hic* do?!?" the exasperated hanyou asked. Kagome thought for a moment.  
  
"Maybe if we mix some sugar with the water, that always helps me." she said.  
  
Inuyasha looked at her worriedly, *Kagome has *hic* had these before? *hic* How can she *hic* stand it, they *hic* hurt! And I'm the *hic* half demon, not *hic* her, if it hurts me then it must *hic* REALLY hurt *hic* her.* Kagome noticed the look in his eyes and was puzzled.  
  
"What's wrong? Besides the obvious hic-up problem of course." she asked.  
  
"You've *hic* had these *hic* before? Don't they *hic* hurt you?" he asked her quietly. Kagome caught on and smiled as she looked Inuyasha in the eyes.  
  
"Not once you get used to them, I've been getting hic-ups since I was really little, because my mom would always tickle me and make me laugh, which is good. Of course they hurt when you get them really bad, but it always is fun and comical when someone gets the hic-ups, unlike you, most people only laugh harder because they find it funny." she said while still smiling at him. Inuyasha was relieved that they didn't cause her so much pain, her smile reassured him as well.  
  
"Ok, so what *hic* is this *hic* 'shoogar' stuff?" he asked her. Kagome smiled at his attempt at the new word.  
  
"Sugar, it's the stuff that makes chocolate sweet, and it's what makes Shippo bounce around after he's had some," she said with a grin, "Sugar is a wonderful thing to have when you want entertainment!" she said almost too happily. She grabbed Inuyasha's haori and proceeded to drag him to the well.  
  
"We're going back to my time to get some, don't worry, we'll come back when we're rid of your hic-ups." She said as he got his balance and followed her obediently, wanting desperately to get rid of his hic-ups. ********************** Through the well:  
  
"Inuyasha! Kagome! What a surprise! I didn't expect to see you two for at least a week!" Ms. Hirageshi, (shit..I forgot how to spell that fricken name again!!!!!!,) said happily.  
  
"Hey mom, we're just here trying to cure Inuyasha's bad case of the hic- ups, do we have any sugar left?" Kagome asked. Her mother nodded and pointed to one of the cabinets near Kagome. Kagome opened it and grabbed the sugar, she proceeded to mix it with some ice-cold water until it dissolved.  
  
"Drink up Inuyasha, if this doesn't work, I don't know what to do." Kagome said as the hanyou drank the mixture slowly, enjoying the sweet taste. When he was done, he was astounded as he spoke without hic-upping.  
  
"Kagome! It worked! I'm cured! Take that you stupid *hic* ah damn it!" Inuyasha muttered as the hic-ups returned. Kagome and her mother were in fits of laughter as the hanyou helplessly looked at the bag of sugar and asked for more so that he could try again, (having really liked that method.) The doorbell rang and Kagome went to answer it, beckoning Inuyasha to stay with her mother in the kitchen. When she got to the door, Hojo was on the other side.  
  
"*Oh shit.this is just great.* Hello Hojo, what brings you here?" she asked a bit quietly, making her voice sound hoarse. Inuyasha heard the boy's name and his ears twitched in the direction of the living room, listening to the conversation. Ms. Hirageshi left the room to go upstairs, leaving the door partially open. Inuyasha crouched and looked in the crack between the door and the wall so that he could watch the two and not be seen.  
  
"Why Hirageshi, should you really be out of bed with your Lapringintitus? I just came to visit and brought you an herbal remedy." Hojo said happily. (Yes, Lapringintitus is a real illness, I should know, I had it last year, but it isn't serious. It is a throat thing, but Hojo doesn't know that now does he?)  
  
Kagome sweat dropped, "Gee, thanks Hojo, that was really sweet of you." Kagome heard a faint hic-up and noticed a pair of amber eyes staring at her. She got annoyed with Inuyasha's curiosity. "Hojo, would you like to SIT down for a moment?" she asked calmly. A huge thump could be heard coming from the kitchen.  
  
"What was that?" Hojo asked, getting back up. Kagome motioned for him to sit back down.  
  
"Oh, that was just Buyo, he must have jumped off of one of the counters.you know how fat he is." Kagome said just as calmly. Hojo smiled and nodded, he sat back down along with Kagome. Inuyasha scowled at being caught but didn't abandon his post, he merely was more careful about his hic-ups and getting caught. Kagome and Hojo were having a nice conversation about their friends at school, (actually, Kagome was bored out of her wits, but Hojo didn't seem to notice.) Finally, Kagome had enough and decided to break free from the conversation.  
  
"You know Hojo, I'm starting to feel a bit dizzy, maybe you should go." she said. Inuyasha breathed a silent sigh of relief as he sensed how bored she was with that 'Hobo' guy. Kagome walked Hojo to the door politely and was about to shut it in his face when he leaned in and gave her a swift kiss on the lips. Inuyasha's world seemed to crumble right before his eyes as he witnessed the scene.  
  
*Kagome.* he thought sadly as his ears drooped.  
  
Kagome was shocked at Hojo's actions and pulled away from him after what was happening registered in her brain, (which took about 3 seconds if you were wondering.)  
  
"Hojo." she began, not wanting to hurt him but wanting to get her feelings across.  
  
"What's wrong Hirageshi? Are you alright?" Hojo asked, concerned.  
  
"No, why did you kiss me?" she asked, almost coldly.  
  
"Why can't I kiss my girlfriend?" Hojo asked, looking hurt.  
  
"Hojo, we haven't even gone out on a date.you have no right to call me your girlfriend.thank you for caring, but I just don't feel that way about you." Kagome said firmly. Inuyasha instantly perked up as he heard Kagome turn the boy down as she had done Koga.  
  
*Maybe I still have a chance.* Inuyasha instantly caught himself and froze. *Who am I kidding, Kagome could never care for someone like me.and why do I care? I love Kikyo! Not Kagome! I..love Kagome too though.* he thought as he finally came to grips with what his senses had been screaming since the day he had met her, he loved her. Suddenly Inuyasha heard the front door close and peeked through the crack to see Kagome saying something to her mom, who had just come down the stairs. Kagome looked very uncomfortable and she kept crossing and uncrossing her arms. Her mother looked at her knowingly and gave her a slight squeeze while smiling. Inuyasha decided to give them a moment of privacy, seeing as that 'Hobo' guy had left. He walked across the room and sat in a chair. He even flattened his ears to be sure that he didn't overhear something he shouldn't. Kagome walked in a few moments later with an envelope in her hand. Inuyasha wondered what was inside, but before he asked, he muttered an apology.  
  
"It's ok I guess, I just don't like people eaves-dropping, that's all." she said to him nervously. Inuyasha could smell her fear, and wondered what was causing it. Was it the kiss she hadn't wanted? Inuyasha decided not to ask, seeing as he shouldn't have seen it to begin with. Instead, he asked about the envelope.  
  
"So, what's with that?" he asked. Kagome froze and smiled at him oddly, causing Inuyasha himself to get nervous, "What? What'd I do?" he asked.  
  
"Inuyasha, your hic-ups are gone!!!" Kagome said happily. Inuyasha paused and noticed that his chest wasn't in any pain, and that she was indeed correct. He grinned a goofy grin.  
  
"Now that I think of it.I haven't hic-upped since you 'sat' me. Those damned things are good for something I guess!" he said happily. He looked at the envelope again with growing interest, Kagome noticed this and held it up.  
  
"It's a letter from my friend in America, a country really far away across a huge ocean," she said, trying to emphasize how far away it was. Inuyasha understood and nodded for her to go on, "and she is really nice, but has had some family problems recently and it sort of changed her a bit, she seems darker, but not evil, just, angry at everything and almost everyone." Kagome added as she opened the envelope and began to read the letter.  
  
"Is she mad at you too?" Inuyasha asked her.  
  
Kagome shook her head no, "She still writes to me and asks me for advice, but there isn't much I can help her with." Kagome trailed off and her eyes got sad and wide, as if in disbelief. Inuyasha questioned her about it.  
  
"What's wrong? What did she write?" he asked. Kagome's eyes welled with tears as she answered him.  
  
".She's got no one left.you can even tell she was crying when she wrote this." Kagome trailed off in her own thoughts. Inuyasha looked at her oddly.  
  
"What do you mean 'she's got no one left'?" he asked. Kagome sighed.  
  
"I mean that for the past year she's been losing the people she cares about.her family.all she had left were her mother and father, and they were divorced, like my parents, but she got to see both of them at different times.now it seems that her mother has been killed, and the police think that it was her father that did it." she said quietly. Inuyasha understood about police, Kagome had told him about the people who upheld the laws of this time, and he also knew that killing in this time was a major no-no.  
  
"I thought it was against the law to kill here, so, does it say why he killed her?" he asked, quite perplexed that a man could willingly make his own family suffer so brutally, without caring. The only person he knew of that was that bad was Naraku himself, but Inuyasha had doubted that a human could be so evil, until now that is.  
  
"No one knows that but him, but when the police catch him he's going to be in a world of trouble.that's for sure. And then my friend will be safe, but she shouldn't have to go to a foster home.it isn't fair." Kagome thought aloud. Inuyasha frowned.  
  
"What's that?" he asked.  
  
"It's a place where children who have no one to take care of them go until someone decides to take them in, she gave me the address of the place so that I could write to her still." she replied. Ms. Hirageshi walked in, having heard most of the conversation, and had made a decision. Kagome noted the distinct firmness and shine in her mother's eyes, and it gave away what she was going to say before she said it.  
  
"Why not, Kagome, invite her to stay here? We could easily care for her, and I'm sure that she would rather stay with a friend than with a stranger. It is your choice though."  
  
Kagome ran up to her mom and gave her a hug, "Thank you for being the best mom ever!" she said happily. Inuyasha smiled, Ms. Hirageshi never ceased to surprise him with her kindness. Ms. H. took the letter and decided to find the phone number by checking out the place's web site. Kagome was a mixture of happy and sad.  
  
"Inuyasha, you are going to get along with her well.she has your personality plus a love for sharp steal weapons.You will REALLY get along with her.she's tough, but she can get really emotional at times too." she said, as if warning him. Inuyasha grinned.  
  
"You know, this might not be a bad thing.if she's tough, then she can come back to the Feudal Era and-"  
  
"Inuyasha SIT!!!!!! No way am I putting her in that sort of danger!" Kagome cut him off. The two argued for a few hours until they decided to go back and look for more shards. Ms. H. said that she would call the place in America and set up a trip so that she could talk to the girl's social worker and try her best to adopt her. Kagome was to come home in a week to await her mom's arrival with her friend/hopefully new sister.  
  
When they got back to the Feudal Era Inuyasha and Kagome were bombarded with questions about how to get rid of hic-ups, seeing as Inuyasha no longer had his. They were told about Kagome's friend hopefully coming to live with her and the group understood. Sango took Kagome to the side after dinner that night to talk.  
  
"So, are you sure that your friend would keep your secret about traveling back and forth through time? If she doesn't, it could be disastrous for you." she asked quietly.  
  
"I have no doubt in my mind that she would keep my secret, hell, knowing her, she would try to follow me here for the sake of adventure. She wouldn't say a peep, she has told me more secrets than I can count and I have kept all of them, so I trust her." Kagome replied honestly. Sango nodded and asked one more question.  
  
"What's your friend's name?"  
  
Kagome answered proudly, "Hekele, her name is Hekele." ****************************** One week later:  
  
A girl on an airplane stared through her small window at the clouds below. She hated heights but for some reason she felt safe with her friend's mother sitting next to her, with the promise of a new beginning at life. The girl, Hekele, looked at her CD player, which had her newest anthem, 'Unforgiven' by Fefe Dobson, on repeat. The song spoke of the singer's hate and despair caused by her father and Hekele knew just how she felt.  
  
*You betrayed me.Why? All I did was love my family and just like everything else I loved they were made to disappear, why do you hate me so?* she wondered to herself. *And why do I feel like I'm only making things worse by running from you?*  
  
Hekele knew that her past life wasn't over, and she knew that she would have to see him at least once more before her life was settled and picked up again. She wished she could just fall into a rabbit hole as Alice had and come out into a world in which she could find adventure and, unlike Alice, friendship too. She closed her eyes as the stewardess told everyone to put on their seat belts and prepare for the landing. Hekele obeyed and held onto her seat.  
  
*Here's to a new start, and a new life.* she thought, trying to push the unhappy thoughts out of her head, with success for a change.  
  
Little did she know, that her past would come back to haunt her, and that her wish for adventure would come true in little less than a few hours.  
  
*Me* Well, how's my second chappie? Interesting? Good!  
  
*Lawyers* (grumble, grumble, grumble)  
  
*Me* What's wrong? Can't find anything illegal? BUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!  
  
*Lawyers* (Eyes light up,) Yes we did! BUAHAHAHAHA!!!!  
  
*Me* (Grins,) What then?  
  
*Lawyers* You don't own Hekele!!! BUAHAHAHA!!!!!! WE WIN!!! YOU'RE GOING TO JUVEE, YOU'RE GOING TO JUVEE! BUAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
*Me* No, I'm not! Hekele is a character based on me, myself, and I!  
I created her!!!  
  
*Lawyers* (begin to cry because they can never win against the great  
Hekele.)  
  
*Kachie* What about me? Didn't I help create Hekele with the story I wrote?  
  
*Lawyers* (suddenly have hope shining in their eyes.)  
  
*Me* Well, You wrote the whole thing about me being a bounty hunter, (which ppl, is an awesome story,) but I have teen angst and hatred for my father and I feel like I can rely on no one but you and Ukemachi and I feel like I wanna turn goth and, as you know, I have pen pals all around the globe, so this version of me is based on the real me, except for the fact that I am a complete chicken when it comes to anything but dealing with stupid, no- brained lawyers.  
  
*Lawyers* (Walk back to their desks and offices to sulk.)  
  
*Kachie* Oh, ok, so long as we know who this version of you is based on the real you and partially the ass kicking you that I invented for my story.  
  
*Me* Yup! So ppl, R&R and that's a wrap.for this chapter anyways. 


	3. Hekele, Meet Inuyasha IV

Kagome's Voice and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Ok, I am so sorry that I haven't updated in a couple of weeks or so, but I really had to study for my finals, plus my stupid computer kept screwing up my files and would let me open this one, and I had to re-save it twice, re type it, and re-save it again.that's why this chapter is called, 'Hekele, meet Inuyasha IV'. I apologize for keeping my loyal fans waiting.but this was a frustrating few weeks!!!  
  
Disclaimer: I still don't own anything but Hekele.because she is the me that I wish I were.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Chapter 3: Hekele, meet Inuyasha IV  
  
At the Hirageshi Shrine:  
  
"Inuyasha, you have to get out of here before my mom and Hekele get home, I don't think that Hekele is ready to meet a hanyou quite yet." Kagome said as she finished straightening up the house. Inuyasha looked hurt.  
  
"So, you're ashamed of me being a hanyou? I didn't think you minded." he said, his eyes downcast. He didn't quite realize that he was actually showing off one of his rare emotional thoughts, but Kagome instantly caught the self-loathing tone in his voice and walked over and put her arms around him loosely from behind. Inuyasha blushed at her touch, he hadn't expected it, but he certainly didn't mind it. It reassured him.  
  
"Inuyasha. I don't care who or what you are. really. I just don't think that after what she's been through that she can handle meeting someone out of the ordinary, and you, my dog eared friend, are out of the ordinary." Kagome said with an affectionate smile as she lightly gave one of his ears a slight tug to stretch her point.  
  
Inuyasha smiled inwardly, *She always knows what's best in this time. why did I even argue? I should probably give her friend time to adjust. Maybe I'll come back and get Kagome in a few days. that should be long enough. * "Kagome?" he asked as calmly as he could, knowing that should she disagree that he would want to keep his famous temper at a minimal.  
  
Kagome could tell by the control in his voice that he was expecting an argument. Was it about Kikyo? Or did it have to do with Hekele? She braced herself for a bombshell as she spoke, "Yes?"  
  
"Your friend is probably going to need time to get used to life here. so, when are you coming back to the Feudal Era?" Inuyasha asked, thinking it would be better to see how she felt before pressing his own thoughts.  
  
Kagome breathed a sigh of relief, "Oh, I guess I can come back in a few days, after I get a chance to settle her in. and tell her about you and Sango and the others as well. Maybe 3 or 4 days?" she said as she sat down on the couch. Inuyasha followed and sat on the floor in front of her and faced the television, which was turned off. Kagome could tell, (with some amazement,) that Inuyasha was actually thinking about her proposal.  
  
*She's only going to stay for a few days? I know that's what I want but I thought that she would surely want to stay longer. would it be fair to take her away from her friend, even for a while, when she's all she's got left? Maybe she should stay longer. * he thought sadly, knowing that it was only fair and right. "Maybe you should stay for a while longer. I mean, she isn't even used to this country yet, and you said she was from really far away, right? Would it be fair to just leave that soon? I mean, I'm all for getting those shards and killing Naraku, but would she be ok here without you?"  
  
Kagome stared at him, astonished. She knew that Inuyasha had lost everything he loved, and then, fifty years ago, he had even lost Kikyo, and so he would understand her friend's feelings better than she could, but still, this was something to behold. Kagome smiled and took advantage of this chance to make him turn red. "Why Inuyasha. I didn't know you cared about something more than the jewel shards. and someone you haven't even met too. " she said. And boy did Inuyasha turn red.  
  
"I-I-I d-don't k-k-know w-w-what y-y-you're t-t-talkin-" Inuyasha stuttered until Kagome interrupted him bye gently rubbing his left year, which made him unwittingly halt his stutter and begin to purr a little instead. Kagome smiled at this and smiled even more when he turned his head a little so that his other ear was accessible. Kagome then began massaging both of his ears. Inuyasha loved her touch and allowed her to continue. *Her hands feel so warm.* He almost didn't hear her when she began to speak.  
  
"I think it's great that you are concerned about how she's going to get along here, and you're probably right too, but you need to trust me when I tell you that it will be fine. She's strong, and she won't mind so much once she knows how dire the situation is that we go. I promise." She whispered into one of his ears. It sent a shiver down his spine, and he kind of liked it. He pondered what Kagome had said for a few minutes before replying, wanting to enjoy his ear rub, which he would never admit to. He put on a face that sent the distinct I'm-only-letting-you-do-this- because-I-want-to-be-nice vibe into the air. To reinforce the vibe, Inuyasha twitched one of his ears away from her delicate fingers, but allowed her to continue a moment later.  
  
"I'm going to come back for you in 5 days, no later, understand? But if that little kitsune of yours gets on my nerves, then I'm coming back sooner." he warned, trying desperately to sound annoyed. Kagome heard the fakeness in his voice and smiled.  
  
"Yes Inuyasha. I understand. " she replied, trying to sound disappointed, but he saw though it just as she had seen through his act.  
  
Inuyasha smiled. *So. she's toying with me eh? She certainly is in a good mood today, and no wonder, she's getting an addition to her already PERFECT family. * he thought some what venomously, but instantly berated himself for thinking such petty thoughts. "I should probably go huh? They're probably on their way. " he said sadly, not really wanting to go. He had the distinct urge to grab Kagome and drag her back to his time and spend some more time with her there, but he had already made up his mind not to. She needed to be here now, it wouldn't be right for her friend to arrive and have Kagome still gone.  
  
Kagome nodded to Inuyasha's last comment, "Yes, I'm afraid so. but, I'll see you soon ok?" she added, as if to cheer both her and Inuyasha up. *I imagine he's going nuts since we haven't found any shards lately. that must be why he's upset. *  
  
Inuyasha stood up, finally able to pull himself away from her gentle touch, and walked to the well house. Kagome followed him quietly. As Inuyasha was about to jump into the well, he realized that she was right behind him, as if to see him off until he passed through the barrier that separated their times. For some reason, this made his heart leap. *She cares enough to see me off like this?* Feeling the need to hear her voice again, even though it would only be a few days until he saw her, he spoke, "Bye. " and jumped into the well. He was about to cross the barrier when he heard her whisper.  
  
"Bye Inuyasha."  
  
It was music to his ears.  
  
***********************  
  
5 min. later:  
  
Kagome heard the car pull into the driveway and opened the door. There stood her mother, grandfather, brother, and her friend/sister, Hekele.  
  
"Konnichiwa Hekele!" she said as she took one of Hekele's bags. Hekele smiled weakly.  
  
"Konnichiwa and arigato Kagome-chan, these are heavy!" she thanked with false happiness. Having been hanging out with Inuyasha for so long, Kagome could tell when emotions were being faked, but she said nothing to Hekele.  
  
"Welcome home!" was all she said as Hekele took off her shoes and followed her upstairs to their room.  
  
When they got there, Hekele found a second bed and a clear side of the room for her and her things. She began to unpack with Kagome's help and was done in no time. She looked at the difference in decoration in the room and frowned a bit, finally coming out of her depressed rut for a while, and found that dark posters and dark bedspread really didn't belong in a pink room. Kagome seemed to notice as well but shrugged it off as if she didn't care. *Strike one for me. * thought Hekele, not buying the I-really-don't- care expression on her friend's face. She sat on her bed and looked at her side of the room and compared it to Kagome's. Poster of favorite rock band, poster of a fluffy bunny, picture of Hekele and her evil guinea pig Tai, picture of Kagome and her fat cat Buyo, drawing of a dark fairy with a staff, drawing of a cute little kitsune, one set of Sais and a sword clad in a black sheath, one bow and a quiver of old looking arrows. She wondered what on earth they were doing out in the open like that and why Kagome had them but shrugged it off. Kagome was probably thinking the same about her Sais and sword. Hekele then looked at their closet, which was open and bulging with clothes. Pink tee shirt, black, formfitting fishnet shirt with a black spaghetti-strapped shirt to go underneath, blue and green mini skirts, black and dark green cargo pants with and without chains attached. Oh yes, Hekele's things didn't quite belong there, but there they were. Kami Sama was she going to ruin this family's lives, she didn't deserve their kindness, and she barely knew them. Hekele began to shed tears slowly. *How am I suppose to act as though I don't owe them my life when I would be stuck in a stupid home if it weren't for them and I am already taking over poor Kagome's room and-*  
  
Kagome walked over to her friend and, upon seeing her tears, sat next to her on the bed, "Hey, it'll be ok. we'll help you through this. we aren't going to let anything happen to you. " she said in the same soothing voice that she often spoke to Shippo in. She warmly embraced her friend. Hekele cried into her shoulder as Kagome comforted her.  
  
By the time dinner was done and ready, Hekele had regained her composure and had redone her make-up so she never appeared to have been crying. She put up a very happy front before the rest of the family and even played video games with Souta for a few hours. When Souta started complaining that he hadn't won any of the rounds in the fighting games, Hekele backed off, feeling really bad that she had won. Souta was obviously used to winning, she would back off until he was as good as her, and then she would put more effort into it. She often went over to her guinea pig, Tai's, cage, (she had been permitted to bring him along and the Hirageshi family had welcomed him with open arms,) to play with him and she showed Souta and Kagome how to hold him. Hekele later was the first one to bed, followed by Kagome a few minutes later. Kagome knew that Hekele was faking her cheeriness, and wished desperately for a way to make her happier. Her thoughts went out to Inuyasha and her other friends in the Feudal Era. *Maybe they will be able to help me come up with something. * She quickly went to sleep, thinking how good it would feel to introduce Hekele to Inuyasha in a few days. Little did she know that a certain hanyou had been watching from his perch in The God Tree when Hekele had cried, and even now when the girl pretended to sleep.  
  
*Kagome is going to have her hands full with her. I hope she comes around. Well, Kagome did help me, maybe she can help her too. * Inuyasha felt bad for not helping Kagome, but she was right, Hekele wasn't ready to meet him quite yet.  
  
***************************** The next day:  
  
Hekele woke up warm in her new bed. She looked around to find Kagome stretching as she too woke up. It was then that she saw what had awoken her - an alarm clock that Hekele swore was from hell as it's annoying buzz filled the room mercilessly. Kagome shut it off as if it was a daily routine and got up.  
  
"Mornin' Hekele. Sleep well?" she asked as she gathered her clothes together. Hekele blinked the sleep out of her eyes and nodded mechanically. Kagome smiled. "We have school today, that's why I set the alarm so early. Your school uniform is over there." she said as she indicated towards the dresser. Hekele nodded and rubbed her eyes, still really sleepy.  
  
*It had to be Monday didn't it? Why couldn't it be a Saturday?* Hekele thought to herself as she grabbed her uniform and headed towards the bathroom to change.  
  
***************************** 20 min. later:  
  
"There is no way on heaven or earth that I am going into public wearing this extremely short skirt!" Hekele exclaimed as she examined herself in the mirror for the tenth time. That little skirt would not do, not at all.  
  
"It's the school uniform though. you have to wear it. " Kagome said impatiently. Hekele still refrained from coming out of the bathroom. Ms. Hirageshi walked by and inquired as to what was going on. Kagome explained it to her and she just smiled.  
  
"Hekele dear, you'll be late if you don't come out and eat breakfast. " she said warmly. Hekele slowly opened the door and stood there shyly. She did not like wearing such short skirts. in fact, she really didn't like skirts all that much to begin with. Ms. Hirageshi smiled again and nodded to the stairs so they could go and eat their breakfast.  
  
"You look nice in the school uniform Hekele," she said kindly. Kagome nodded just as sweetly. Hekele just sighed.  
  
"I still don't like wearing short skirts. " she said. All three laughed.  
  
****************************  
  
Feudal Era:  
  
"Inuyasha, when's Kagome coming back?"  
  
"What's her friend like Inuyasha?"  
  
"Did you even get to meet her?"  
  
"Where were you last night?"  
  
"Were you at Kagome's house?"  
  
"Is she bringing me any candy when she comes back?"  
  
Inuyasha's head was spinning and his ears were twitching like mad just as they had been for the past eight hours that he had been home from watching over Kagome and her friend secretly for the first few hours of the night. Miroku and Shippo had been asking questions non-stop. Inuyasha was about to, as Kagome would say, 'blow a fuse,' whatever that was. Sango had been quiet the whole time. thankfully.  
  
"Would you two leave poor Inuyasha alone? You have been going on and on about Hekele and other random things since he got back!" she yelled, causing Miroku and Shippo to cringe and Inuyasha to smile triumphantly.  
  
"Thank you Sango. " he rubbed his ears in relief of the sudden silence and actually thanked Sango for intervening. He was just that relieved.  
  
"Umm, Inuyasha?" Sango asked slowly.  
  
"Yeah? What?"  
  
"Is Hekele nice? Is she fitting in ok over there? Where did she sleep? What did she think about having to wear those short skirts to Kagome's school? Kagome said that Hekele didn't like skirts too much. I hope she didn't get upset about it. When do we get to meet her? We haven't even met Kagome's mom, grandfather, and brother yet. but you have! Why is that Inuyasha?!? Do you think that Hekele will keep Kagome's secret about traveling through time?!? Kagome said she would, but I just-" Sango was cut off by a loud thump on the ground, which turned out to be a very upset hanyou who was dizzy from all the questions. Sango slowly backed away when he looked up at her with those piercing amber eyes in a glare that she swore could kill. She jumped behind Miroku for protection from the now seemingly enraged Inuyasha.  
  
"Why Sango my dear. if I had known you wanted to get close. " Miroku said as he slyly put his arm around her and as his hand traveled a little to the south.  
  
WHACK!!! THUD!!! CRASH!!! ~faint~  
  
"HENTAI!!!!!!!!!!!!" Sango yelled as she repeatedly hit Miroku on the head with her giant boomerang until he fell unconscious. Shippo laughed as usual at the perverted monk and Inuyasha, who would usually enjoy watching Miroku get hit as well, simply rubbed his temples and decided to leave Kaede's hut before he lost his mind. He went outside and leaped into his favorite tree and took a nap.  
  
***************************  
  
Present day Tokyo:  
  
"So, when did you get here?"  
  
"How long are you staying?"  
  
"How do you know Kagome?"  
  
"What's America like?"  
  
"Where in America are you from again?" asked Kagome's three best friends at the exact same time, for the MILLIONTH time.  
  
Hekele was about to explode from all the questions that she had been bombarded with since her arrival at the school. She wanted nothing more than to grab her katana and sais and cut those annoying girls to bits. She had, however, much more self control than that. "I got here last night, I'm staying forever, Kagome's my pen pal and is now my adoptive sister, America is like it is on the news; full of pigs, hicks, and assholes, and I'm from a nobody town in the state of Michigan. That clarify everything?" she said through gritted teeth. Kagome's friends nodded politely. Kagome herself was trying to get them to calm down for poor Hekele's sake. Her friends had been asking questions and talking more than usual, and even Kagome wanted them to put a sock in it. She was surprised that Hekele hadn't snapped, and silently laughed at what would happen if Miroku, Sango, and Shippo ever did that to Inuyasha. He would snap, no doubt about it.  
  
(OC: ^_^! Sorry, I couldn't help it!)  
  
Hekele said good-bye to Kagome's friends and walked up the shrine steps and into the house. Kagome was about to follow when her friends pulled her back.  
  
"What's up?" she asked them.  
  
Eri was the first to speak, "What's up with her? She looked like she was about to bite our heads off, and we didn't even do anything."  
  
"She's dangerous, you can tell by looking at her and by how she acted in school today. I personally think that she might be as bad as your rude, obnoxious, and abusive boyfriend," Yuri added.  
  
Kagome rolled her eyes at them. She had never said that the rude, obnoxious, and 'abusive', as her friends called it; guy in her life was her boyfriend. In fact, she had said he wasn't, but they never believed her. Besides, Inuyasha wasn't 'abusive' in the least at her, obnoxious and rude however, were another story. She was pleasantly surprised when Yuri hadn't mentioned him being a two-timer this time, as she and her other friends usually did. All Kagome said was that she kind of liked the guy but that he liked another girl, (damn Kikyo,) and they automatically started calling him a two-timer and tried harder to set her up with that thick headed but oh-so-sweet Hojo. At least they had let it sink in that he wasn't a two- timer.  
  
"Don't forget two-timer Yuri!" yelled Eri and her other friend at the same time. Kagome rolled her eyes in disbelief and turned to leave again, but stopped when she heard them still whispering about Hekele.  
  
"Listen guys, you have no idea what she has gone through! So what if she kept to herself today, she just got here yesterday for Christ's sake! She will need time to adjust! And so what if she kept darting her eyes at everyone, THE GUYS WERE ALL LOOKING AT HER IN A SHORT SKIRT!!! She doesn't even like skirts so she felt really uncomfortable in our school uniform; it's no big deal!!! Why must you always judge my friends before you get to know them?!?" she yelled at them angrily because of their lack of understanding yet again. The three girls looked at her in shock and disbelief at what they had heard. Yuri looked at Eri and whispered.  
  
"See? The new girl's rubbing off on her already. " At this Kagome threw up her arms in submission and bid them farewell as she climbed the steps and went into her house. The whole day had been nuts for both her and Hekele, and her friends were making it worse. She found Hekele in their room looking out the window, looking a bit sad. Kagome walked over to her but before she could say anything Hekele spoke.  
  
"Thanks for defending me. I know how hard it is to disagree with friends when you already feel distant from them. It's like if you don't act or think exactly the same as they do, they'll disown you. I should know, I feel the same way," she said truthfully.  
  
Kagome smiled at her friend when she replied, "Well, they need to learn to stop judging people they don't take the time to learn from. You aren't violent, or mean, you just want to keep to yourself for a while, and they kept prying into your solitude when you made it clear you weren't ready for them to. There is nothing wrong with the way you reacted at all."  
  
Hekele smirked for the first time as she responded to the, 'You aren't violent,' part of her friend's little speech, "Not violent? Kagome, I was about to run up here, grab my katana, and slice off their mouths!!! No offense or anything, but they are so annoying!!!" Kagome laughed at this as she too wished for an easy way to get them to shut up once in a while. But they were good friends in a sense that they cared about her well being, even if they knew nothing about what was best for her.  
  
"You too? I have wanted to do that once in a while. not in a way that would be that messy. but just as effective," she smiled as Hekele genuinely laughed, "Hey, what do you want for dinner later? Souta is staying at a friend's house and Mom is going out of town for two days to visit my aunt with Grandpa. she did tell you right?" Kagome finished questioningly, knowing how they often forgot to mention things like that to her. She was relieved when Hekele nodded contently, as if she honestly didn't mind.  
  
"Yeah, she mentioned it to me yesterday before we went to bed. and she apologized for it multiple times as well. I told her it was fine, but she insisted on apologizing anyway for leaving us by ourselves so soon after I got here. I guess she was trying to make sure I could handle myself alone first, but I'm truly ok here, besides, I've got you to look out for me," Hekele answered with a grin, which made Kagome laugh again. The two girls went downstairs and began picking through the cupboards and refrigerator for something sweet and sugary, seeing as neither felt like cooking an actual meal. Kagome settled for chocolate milk and cookies while Hekele took two huge scoops of ice cream and put them on a waffle cone. They put on some music and began dancing around as if they were having a sleep over with a bunch of their friends and didn't care how goofy they looked.  
  
After half an hour they sat down with flushed faces as they tried to get their breath back. Kagome was happy to see Hekele having fun, knowing that it probably wouldn't last as long as she would like it to. And boy was she right. Just then, a huge thunk was heard in their bedroom, along with a lot of squeaking and yelping from Tai, who's cage had been moved up there the previous night when the girls had gone to bed. Kagome swore she heard a bit of cursing and knew instantly what was happening. Hekele, however, did not and rushed up the stairs to see what was the cause of the loud thump and her little friend's distress. Kagome knew that this was going to be trouble.  
  
*Hekele. don't freak out. Inuyasha won't hurt anything that doesn't hurt him first. unless it really pisses him off. don't do anything I would do* she thought, knowing that whatever she did while Inuyasha was a little confused ended up in a huge argument and a lot of trouble.  
  
****************************  
  
Upstairs:  
  
Hekele reached the room only to find a boy in weird red clothing holding her guinea pig in one hand with a confused and angry look on his face. One look at his hand and she could tell that Tai had bitten him in the struggle. The boy had light, silverish hair and appeared to have two dog- ears on the top of his head of the same color. He also had piercing amber eyes. She would have called him cute, but she was too pissed at him for breaking into her and Kagome's room.  
  
"Who the hell are you and what are you doing in this house!?" she yelled angrily. Kagome appeared behind her in an instant and the boy seemed slightly relieved somehow. Did he know her?  
  
"They were driving me nuts Kagome! All they did was ask stupid questions even when I was trying to nap and Miroku even asked questions in his sleep when Sango knocked him out again! I can't take it! You have got to come back now! And what is this RAT thing that just bit me?!?!?!" the boy asked in a slightly yelling tone as he swung his hand up and down rapidly trying to get Tai off of it, but to no avail. Kagome rolled her eyes and cautiously walked over to the distressed hanyou as Hekele quietly made her way to the shelf, which held her katana. As Kagome peeled Tai off of the boy's hand Hekele lifted the katana and unsheathed it stealthily and silently, but not silently enough.  
  
"Wench, put that katana down before you hurt yourself with it," the boy said to her mockingly as his ears twitched in her direction, forgetting to be nice to the new girl as he looked at the mark that her pet had made. Hekele fumed.  
  
"How dare you call me that, AND tell me what to do when you broke into our room! Serves you right that Tai bit you! And, FYI, I can use this weapon quite effectively!" she yelled at him, readying her sword. The boy 'Feh'ed and watched intently as Kagome put his little assailant back in it's cage. Hekele, for some reason, wasn't surprised that he held no fear of her and her weapon. She studied him for a moment, noting how his ears were twitching from Kagome to her and back again repeatedly, as if he were listening to both of them for some sort of unexpected movement. Like preparing himself in case of a killing blow perhaps? She quickly concluded that the ears were real, despite the oddity of them. Seeing that her life was in no visible threat, Hekele lowered her weapon, but held it tightly, just in case. She made her way to Kagome and her pet, now in his cage.  
  
She breathed deeply, as if calming herself, "Kagome," she said questioningly, "who the hell is this, and why is he in our room?" Kagome looked back at Hekele with a plastered smile on her face.  
  
"Hekele, meet Inuyasha, he is a friend of mine. I promise that I will explain everything to you in a moment, but right now I need to speak with him, ALONE. Ok?" she said in a sugary tone that sent a chill down Inuyasha's spine. He knew he was in trouble, and, apparently, Hekele could tell as well, because she slowly calmed down and nodded to her friend with the same sugary smile as she cautiously left the room.  
  
"If you need me, I'll be in the living room," she muttered and she shut the door. When she finally made it to and sat on the couch, she heard the most peculiar thing.  
  
"SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT!" and then a, 'THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!'  
  
Concluding that it was Inuyasha's punishment, Hekele shrugged it off and decided to ask Kagome about it when she explained everything else to her later.  
  
************************  
  
Back Upstairs:  
  
"What was that for?!?!?" Inuyasha yelled from his place embedded in the carpet.  
  
"That was one 's-i-t' for every day that you were early coming here. Now that I've gotten even some what, why don't you explain a little more clearly, WHY you are here terrifying my friend and traumatizing her pet guinea pig?" Kagome replied. Inuyasha looked thoughtful.  
  
"Oh, is that what that thing is, I thought it was a rat who got its tail chopped off or something. Why did it bite me? All I did was pick it up and try to figure out why the hell it was squeaking and squawking!" the hanyou asked, looking at the creature with an icy stare that could probably kill any other animal if thy had been present. All Tai did was stare back at Inuyasha, which made him feel unnerved slightly, considering the way Tai looked hungry. Kagome scooped the guinea pig up in her gentle hands and pet him repeatedly on the head, making Inuyasha a bit jealous in the process.  
  
"You probably scared him, I don't think he is used to people jumping through a windowsill and landing two feet away from his cage, besides, he doesn't like to be picked up with one hand, he likes to be cradled, that's why he bit you. You kind of hurt him first." Kagome said knowingly as she nuzzled the little fuzz ball in her hands. When she handed him to Inuyasha, (who desperately tried to hold Tai correctly for fear of being bitten again,) Inuyasha ended up with three more bite marks on his clawed hands.  
  
"Or, perhaps he just doesn't like you!" she laughed at the annoyed hanyou before her. Inuyasha just looked away. "So," she said, grabbing his attention once more, "what are you doing here so early?" Inuyasha rolled his eyes and rubbed his ears.  
  
"The stupid monk, slayer, and kitsune were asking questions non-stop and I couldn't even think straight. They wouldn't let me sleep, eat, or even let me think without pestering me! Who knew three idiots could ask so many questions!"  
  
Kagome rolled her eyes at his last comment but then caught something, "Wait a minute. why were they asking questions? They knew that you weren't going to meet Hekele for a while. " she asked accusingly, as though Inuyasha knew something that she didn't. Inuyasha froze at her tone, and at the guinea pig that was still staring at him from his place in her arms..  
  
"*Oh crap! Why did I have to have such a huge mouth!* Uhh. I sort of came over last night and. *Oh well, might as well admit it* . checked up on you guys. so I knew what was going on. and stuff. " he muttered quietly as he looked away. Kagome smiled at him warmly.  
  
"*And I thought curiosity killed the cat, not the dog. How sweet to be concerned about her. I only wish that he would show me that much consideration OFF the battlefield too. * So, you were worried about her? That's sweet Inuyasha. I really think that knocking on the door next time would be a little wiser though. She can really use that katana of hers, I'd hate to be caught off guard if she has it and is in a fighting stance. and mood," Kagome said in a brief lecture. Inuyasha scrunched up his nose.  
  
"But I always come in through your window, why can't I come in through your window?" he asked in a sad-disguised-as-an annoyed tone.  
  
Kagome smiled understandingly, "Well, you can, but she didn't know that you did, or even that you existed yet. I was going to tell her later about everything, but I didn't get a chance to yet because of a rough day at school. She was stressed out too and we had just wound down and relaxed when you made your little appearance. She thought that you had broken into our room and didn't stop to think before rushing in and confronting you. " she coo-ed sweetly. Inuyasha nodded absentmindedly as he continued to stare at the guinea pig, not wanting to anger it. Kagome noticed this and decided to let Tai run around on the floor, just for fun.  
  
As soon as the guinea pig left her arms he made a beeline to Inuyasha's leg, which was conveniently located close in front of him. Inuyasha jumped up as it fastened its teeth in his leg and began to try to shake him off again. Kagome laughed and gently took Tai in her hands and put him back into his cage. Inuyasha sat down on the bed Indian-style, just in case 'it' knew how to get out. Kagome sat next to him and smiled at his actions, noting that he still never took his eyes off of his attacker.  
  
Catching her smile, Inuyasha began to explain himself, "It's not that 'IT' hurt me, it's just that it's more persistent than half of Naraku's minions and is more than five times as small. also. it's pretty creepy the way it's staring at me. "  
  
Kagome nodded, knowing for a fact that the little bites that Tai had given him could never hope to hurt him, being half demon and all, he could withstand getting gutted a couple of times before he was down and out for even a few hours.  
  
"Maybe we should go downstairs and talk to Hekele, she probably thinks that you've kidnapped me and that we are half way to the country border by now!" Kagome said. Inuyasha nodded and followed her to her door. Kagome opened the door and Hekele came tumbling down onto the floor. Kagome laughed and Inuyasha fumed. Hekele smiled sheepishly.  
  
"What? Was I supposed to leave you alone up here with the jolly-red biscuit?"  
  
"Biscuit?" Kagome asked.  
  
"I'll explain later..." she said with an extra innocent smile, having gotten over her anger and fear of the hanyou as quickly as it had come. Kagome caught on and blushed furiously. Inuyasha looked clueless.  
  
"What? What's going on?" he asked stupidly. Hekele rolled her eyes and Kagome blushed more.  
  
"Oh yeah, a total biscuit," she said to Kagome.  
  
"Is she talking about me? 'Cuz, if she is, then I wanna know what she's saying!!!" Inuyasha asked warily, really wanting an explanation to the new nickname he had been given. Hekele and Kagome smiled, and walked down the stairs and into the living room. Inuyasha followed suit and sat down as well. Hekele took a deep breath and spoke.  
  
"Ok, now that I know that you aren't going to kill me," she said, smiling at the now attentive hanyou, "will you guys please tell me what is going on?"  
  
************************************  
  
Feudal Era:  
  
The lord of the western lands watched the kitsune, demon slayer, and monk from his perch in a nearby tree with an evil grin.  
  
"Now. who shall disappear. to flush my dear half brother from his hiding?" Sesshoumaru asked evilly as he watches the lecherous monk go for the demon slayer's behind with disgust.  
  
"M'lord, why are you searching for the Tetsusaiga as of now? You already have its superior blade, the Tokijin," Jakken, his toad-like servant asked quietly.  
  
(Bad SP on the swords' names .sorry, I haven't seen them spelled enough to remember it. )  
  
"This, Sesshoumaru shall do for fun, as I have no need for his second rate blade any longer, I also wish to see his demon blood boil. I want to fight him at his best. when he is afraid of losing someone he cherishes and allows himself to transform. Jakken, return to camp and care for Rin, you know she dislikes being alone." Sesshoumaru said passively.  
  
"M'lord, why do you keep such a weak human girl in your charge? She is of no value and importance, and is quite annoying." Jakken said absentmindedly. Sesshoumaru's eyes glowed red and his demonic features grew more threatening.  
  
"You dare to question me when you cannot follow simple orders?!?" he glared threateningly at his servant. Jakken spilled a quick apology before jumping down the tree and running back to where the said girl was waiting at their camp. Sesshoumaru grinned at the scene before him. The kitsune was the only one remaining outside. He was pretending to be Sesshoumaru's half-brother.  
  
"Kaze no Kizu!" he was heard yelling and swinging a stick like Inuyasha would his sword. He was hopping around attacking the air as though it were a hoard of demons out to get him and his friends. Sesshoumaru was mildly amused.  
  
"Looks like this little runt sees more in my pathetic half-brother than just an annoying friend. he seems to idolize him. This and the fact that he views that pathetic miko as a mother could prove very useful. I'll take him now." Sesshoumaru jumped from his perch in the tree and grabbed Shippo, covering his lightly fanged mouth as he leapt away in the same instant. Shippo tried to yell for help and even tried to bite his assailant, but to no avail. Unnoticed to Sesshoumaru, Shippo dropped a seed that would sprout into a wailing mushroom in mere minutes, causing his friends to notice his disappearance sooner, and perhaps they could save him. If not, Shippo knew that Inuyasha and Kagome would, the problem was that Sesshoumaru wanted them to try and save the kit, and he would be waiting.  
  
***********************************************************  
  
*Me* So. how did you like it??? I really tried to update sooner but, like I said before, my computer kept screwing up. I think I have the situation under control now though. Ok, I really feel like dedicating my next chapter to someone. If you are interested, send me a review with one reason why I should dedicate it to you, as well as one comment about my story. Once I get at least three more reviews, I will pick the winner, 'kay? Ppl, please be civil, I will accept no threats as reasons to dedicate the chappi to you, so don't even try it! Oh yes, and if you are wondering about the whole 'biscuit' thing, Hekele was basically calling Inuyasha a hottie or a cutie. I got the term from a book I read and now I use it. and I love it. so yea. all it means is hottie and cutie.  
  
Now, I saw this in Mysterious-Kitsune's stories. and I felt compelled to review, so here goes.  
  
Ya see this?  
  
\\ // |  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
Keep going.  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
That's it.  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
Just a little farther.  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
Now. REVIEW!!!!!!!!!  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
|  
  
\ /  
  
* 


	4. Down the well and Hekele's song

Kagome's Voice and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Well, I certainly hope that you are all enjoying this story. I have gotten lots of positive feedback, but I wish some were a bit more helpful. I need ideas for my story. I am not sure where I want it to go as of now...I never really did to begin with. I am going to add more of Kagome's singing, using various songs that I deem worthy and make a good representation of the chapters. If you are good, I may slip in another song in this chapter...but I cannot guarantee that it will be Kagome singing it ^-^!  
  
I have decided to dedicate this chapter to two people, well, one person and one animal. The person is my BEST friend Kachie Runa, whom you may or may not have seen in my first chapter. (you know, the little comments at the end? Do you  
  
people even read them???) She was willing to give me her Sesshoumaru in this fic, yes, we are both madly in love with him. Also, I wanted to let all my readers know that in later chapters she is going to become one of the main characters, so I wanted to get a jump start in introducing her...sort of...well, mostly I was preparing you for extra insanity when she joins, but yeah, introduce her.  
  
The animal that I am dedicating this chapter to is my guinea pig, Tai. My beloved pig passed on to the larger life exactly two weeks ago, and since he was one of my best buddies, and since I haven't always appreciated him like I should have, I am dedicating this to him as well. He was going to be 5 years old at the end of this month and I raised him since he was born. (I got him from a friend who had two guinea pigs that were SUPPOSE to be both boys. Since he was born I helped to care for him and was allowed to take him home when he was old enough.) For  
  
those of you who like Tai in my story, do not worry, he will still be a part of it and will live on in our hearts forever. God Bless my guinea pig Tai.  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing but Hekele, no songs, no characters, and no song artists for that matter either. *glares at Lawyers who sheepishly glance around the room as they pretend to wonder who Hekele is speaking of...*  
  
***********************************************  
  
Down the well and Hekele's song  
  
Hirageshi Shrine:  
  
"So, you are telling me that a year ago, you were pulled down the well by a demon seeking the Shikon no Tama, landed in another time, and had the Shikon no Tama ripped out of your side. Inuyasha saved you once you freed him from a fifty-year-old spell. Then he tried to kill you because you smelled of the women who put him there to begin with, and since you look like her it only added to the illusion that you were her. Next, an old woman that you met when you first arrived put a rosary on him that allows you to beat the snot out of him with a single word. A while later you accidentally shattered the Shikon no Tama and have been searching for its shards ever since. Along the way you met some more friends and a new enemy who also seeks the jewel shards, this hanyou Naraku. He absorbs demons against their will to make them apart of his makeshift body. Am I missing anything???" Hekele asked boldly, as if daring Inuyasha and Kagome to add to her new found information, which they did.  
  
"Ya, Kagome is the only one who can see the jewel shards and Kagome is the reincarnation of the women who pinned me to that tree for fifty years, who happens to be the former guardian of the Shikon no Tama, a priestess named Kikyo." Inuyasha stated as if it were obvious.  
  
"And Inuyasha's sword can only be used in the defense of humans/humanity, and he is the only one who can come back and forth through time as well as I, except he doesn't need any Shikon shards like I do. Kikyo was brought back to life by a witch demon and now we share part of our soul...I got the bigger part, so she needs to eat the souls of young girls in order to live." Kagome finished. Hekele closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. Inuyasha looked as though he was bored, but he actually wanted to see how she would react, Kagome did as well.  
  
"People, I was being sarcastic!!! I didn't really want any more information!!!" she shouted. Inuyasha and Kagome looked at each other oddly for a moment neither had expected this reaction.  
  
"Ummm, is that all you have to say on the topic? You...believe us?" Kagome asked. Hekele nodded.  
  
"Of course I believe you, I have living proof right here...a short tempered hanyou!" she said, indicating Inuyasha with her thumb, which earned her a snort, "But there is one thing I need to do before I can completely trust what you told me..." Inuyasha raised an eyebrow, wondering what on earth she could do to prove to herself that everything was real. All of a sudden he felt a huge tug on his left ear and he yelped in surprise. Kagome and Hekele were laughing. Inuyasha glared at Hekele for a moment as she released her offending hand from his ear.  
  
"What the fuck bitch?! What was that for?!?" he yelled at her. Kagome was too busy laughing to 'sit' him for his language.  
  
Hekele looked at Inuyasha sweetly, "I'm sorry Inuyasha...your ears are so...damn I thought I rid my vocabulary of this word...cute, I couldn't help it!"  
  
Inuyasha grumbled never to do it again as Kagome calmed herself down. She looked at Inuyasha and smiled sympathetically. Inuyasha couldn't help but smile a little in return. They sat in each other's gaze for a moment.  
  
*Oh yeah, they're smitten...* Hekele thought to herself happily. "Yo, earth to the hanyou and Kags! So what exactly is up with the unscheduled visit?"  
  
Inuyasha and Kagome snapped out of their momentary stupor and blushed a bit, refusing to look at each other. Inuyasha spoke first.  
  
"Sango, Miroku, and Shippo wouldn't shut-up!!! They wouldn't even let me sleep!!!!!" Inuyasha whined, much like a child who had been deprived of his or her favorite candy. Hekele giggled and nodded. She turned to Kagome.  
  
"So Kags, are you going to go back, or send poor Inuyasha as a messenger boy and tell them to leave him alone?" she asked. Kagome blushed, knowing that Hekele was on to something; she always had a habit of doing that when they were e-mailing each other, apparently she was the same way in person.  
  
"Well...it is getting late..." she said while looking out the window, "Inuyasha, would you like to stay here tonight and return in the morning?" she asked him. All of a sudden, there was a noise upstairs. Hekele jumped up but stood for a moment in thought.  
  
"Kagome, you said that Inuyasha was the only one who could travel through time besides yourself?" she asked. Kagome nodded.  
  
"Then can I chop whoever I find up there to bits? I feel like hurting something..." she said. Kagome nodded. Inuyasha looked at her oddly as Hekele disappeared upstairs.  
  
"But you never let me do that..." he said angrily. Kagome smirked.  
  
"True, but she wouldn't attacker her own guinea pig, judging by the sound of it, he attacked Buyo...but then again Buyo should know not to paw open that cage..." she rambled on and on. Inuyasha's face turned to one of horror.  
  
"Buyo!!! I am gonna kill you, you lazy fat cat!!! Next time I find you near my guinea pig and he is limping you are gonna learn what it means to get your fat ass kicked!!!" they heard Hekele yell. Inuyasha and Kagome ran like all hell was breaking loose only to find that Hekele was sitting on her bed with Buyo and Tai having a staring contest and playing with each other. Hekele beamed at her friends' confused expressions.  
  
"Got ya!!! I knew that would get your attention...it seems like they are going to get along well together..." she said while grinning evilly at them. Inuyasha ran over to Buyo and scooped him up and away from the psychotic guinea pig. Kagome and Hekele looked at him questioningly.  
  
"Poor Buyo...don't even think about letting that stupid ball of evil fur push you around...next time it comes near you kick its ass...I don't care if it comes in peace or not!!!" he said as he pet Buyo lovingly. Kagome rolled her eyes at him.  
  
*He loves my cat more than me!!!* she thought, annoyed. Hekele just burst into laughter.  
  
"I never thought I'd see a dog acting so protective, AND lovey-dovey towards a cat!!!" she yelled. Kagome giggled and Inuyasha snorted, but he did not put down his furry companion.  
  
Inuyasha decided to stay for the night. He grudgingly slept on the couch while the girls stayed in their room. He was used to being near to Kagome. He liked to watch over her when she slept, it gave him a sense of purpose, even though nothing was going to attack her in this era. He listened to the girls' strict rule however, understanding that they wanted alone time. He slept peacefully until Buyo decided to crawl onto and slept on his stomach, nearly crushing him. He let him however and slept soundly himself after he was used to the extra 20 pounds of weight on him. It was times like these that Inuyasha understood why Kagome always came back to her era, she was safe and could rest in peace instead of pieces. Inuyasha frowned in his sleep as the thought crossed his mind.  
  
*********************************************************  
  
Morning; Kagome's era:  
  
Hekele awoke to the alarm clock and frowned. She hit the shut off switch but nothing happened. She glared at the offending alarm clock and growled.  
  
*******************************  
  
Inuyasha woke up to the sounds of banging, screeching, and giggling. He sat up, causing Buyo to fall onto the cushion, and walked sleepily upstairs.  
  
As he got to the door, he remembered what Kagome had said about knocking and tapped the door first. "Is everything ok? It sounds like someone squished the pig wanna-be with one of those 'hammer' things." he said groggily. He opened the door a crack and saw Kagome laughing. He opened it the rest of the way and saw Hekele glaring out the window. He cautiously peeked outside and saw Kagome's alarm clock in a mechanical mess all over the lawn. It was still buzzing. Inuyasha tried hard to choke down a snide remark, and even a laugh, but the latter of the two escaped his lips anyway. After all, Hekele had treated the alarm clock worse than Inuyasha had when he had come to 'apologize' to Kagome over the very first 'Kouga' incident they had had. Hekele looked at Inuyasha dangerously and he backed up, not wanting to end up like the alarm clock.  
  
Hekele threw her arms up in the air, "All I wanted was 5 MORE MINUTES!!!" she yelled to no one in particular. At this Inuyasha couldn't help but join Kagome in a fit of laughter. Hekele took a glance at the two, successfully shutting them up, and crawled back into her bed. Inuyasha looked at her thoughtfully and got an idea. He ran back downstairs and came back up with Buyo. Kagome shook her head, knowing what his devious mind was conjuring. He walked carefully to Hekele's bed...and dropped Buyo squarely on her side, (she had curled up into a ball.) Hekele jumped up in surprise and shock and tried to get Buyo off, but the problem was he was clawing her side tightly. Kagome and Inuyasha jumped to her rescue and pried him off of her. Hekele glared at Inuyasha and he put on his ever so famous arrogant expression.  
  
"Feh." was all he said.  
  
After kicking Inuyasha out of the room the girls got their clothes together and Hekele went into the bathroom to change. She emerged the depressed looking schoolgirl she was and wandered downstairs to find some breakfast. She entered the kitchen and found Inuyasha looking in the cupboards.  
  
"What are you looking for?" she asked tiredly.  
  
"Ramen." he said as he continued to look through the cupboards. Hekele stared at him for a moment and shook her head.  
  
"No." she said flatly. Inuyasha froze and looked at her dangerously, mimicking her expression from earlier.  
  
"What do you mean 'no.'? I always eat ramen. You can't tell me 'no.'"  
  
"Oh yes I can, you need to eat something besides noodles...and I have just the thing!" she said thoughtfully. Inuyasha watched as she ran to the freezer and grabbed some sort of packaged meat cut into strips and some eggs from the fridge.  
  
"Do you like eggs and bacon?" she asked. He shrugged his shoulders impassively. Hekele took that as a good sign and grabbed a frying pan and put it on the stove. She had begun to fry the bacon when Kagome came downstairs.  
  
"Mmm, bacON," she said, imitating a quote from a funny movie she had recently seen. Inuyasha twitched his ears in acknowledgment of her arrival but continued to watch with curiosity what Hekele was doing. Hekele fried the last of the bacon and wiped the frying pan dry from the grease and began to fry some eggs in it, breaking off some sections of bacon and putting them into the eggs as she went. Then she paused.  
  
"Kagome, hard or soft yoke?" she asked. Kagome stated that she liked the hard yoke better and Hekele cooked the group of eggs longer, adding a bit of pepper to them when they were done. She got out three plates and some forks and served everyone. She placed two bacon-fried eggs on each plate with some extra bacon on the side. She watched triumphantly as Inuyasha and Kagome dug into the food contently.  
  
"Hekele, where did you learn to make this...I've never had the bacon cooked into the eggs before...it adds a really good flavor!" Kagome said happily as she continued to munch on her food. Inuyasha nodded contently as well. Hekele smiled a bit.  
  
"My mom taught me," she said somewhat sadly, "and her grandmother taught her too...we nick-named it the 'Grandma Conway Special', after my great- grandma Conway." Inuyasha and Kagome instantly slowed their eating pace. They suddenly had a new respect for the meal laid before them. Hekele munched on hers contently and suddenly smiled oddly as if she was trying to suppress laughter. Inuyasha's ear twitched when she giggled.  
  
"What's so funny?" he asked. Hekele smiled even more.  
  
"It seems that I only cook well when I'm not the only person eating the end result. Rule number one about my cooking; never eat my personal leftovers, they taste horrible!" she admitted. Kagome giggled and Inuyasha snickered. Then Hekele got serious.  
  
"So what are you going to do about school Kagome? Are you just going to leave or are you going to call in sick for a day?" she asked. Kagome shook her head thoughtfully.  
  
"Nope, I'm going to call my mom and have her call the school for me, it's much more believable. Wow, this has to be the first time that I get to choose my own illness...My grandfather always says I have some sort of life threatening disease that people haven't had in years...If I'm lucky...this time, it is going to be normal...I am going to have mom tell them I have the flu, plain and simple! And as for the length of time...a week or so should do..."  
  
"Woe, woe, woe, a WEEK or so? Isn't that a bit long? Do you always stay away for this long?" Hekele asked. Kagome nodded. Hekele bit her lip to stop herself from telling her not to go quite yet for she knew this was important. Kagome went upstairs and grabbed her oversized yellow backpack. She stuffed tons of Ramen Noodles, potato chips, chocolate, and other candy into its depths. Hekele looked in wonder as the items were stuffed in one by one. She placed finally some shampoo and conditioner in it and was finished.  
  
"Well, I'm calling mom and then we're off!" she said. Hekele nodded. After the call she and Inuyasha walked out to the well house with Kagome. She watched as Inuyasha took the backpack from Kagome and jumped down the well. A beautiful blue light engulfed him and he disappeared. Kagome took out a small jar with beautiful crystals in it.  
  
*Those must be the jewel shards I've heard so much about...how pretty...* she thought as Kagome took a few out of the jar and held them in her hand. She jumped into the well and called a hearty good-bye, not noticing that she had dropped one of the precious gems. Hekele picked it up cautiously. She could actually feel its aura of power. She grimaced, knowing that she had to get this back to Kagome. *Who knows, she may need it.* she thought. She ran back to the house and grabbed her katana and sais, not wanting to be unprepared for the danger she may or may not encounter while in the Feudal Era. Then she paused when she noticed her red backpack, which was almost as big as Kagome's yellow one. *I might be able to help...I'm no miko...but maybe I can still help...* she thought as she picked it up and threw random necessities into it. She changed into one of her other outfits, one that consisted of black cargo pants with chains and a white tank top with Evanescence written in black, she wore a solid black bucket hat as well. She also grabbed her exfoliating sponge and her rose scented beauty products...that to her were as valuable as Kagome's shards were to Inuyasha. Hekele noticed her CD player and brought it with her, thinking she could offer it to Kagome for a while as a bribe to let her stay for a few days. When she was finished she packed some extra food and was on her way. She made her way to the well house and, while holding the shard she had found, jumped into its depths. When she emerged from the sea of blue light that had engulfed her she was at the bottom. She climbed up the walls of the well and lifted herself out. She noticed a trail that looked a bit worn down and followed it, hoping it was the one Kagome and Inuyasha had taken.  
  
**********************************************************  
  
Present day Tokyo; Kagome's aunt's house:  
  
Ms. H. shivered suddenly, she got an odd feeling. She turned to her father.  
  
"Dad, did Kagome say that only she was going to the Feudal Era?" she asked him.  
  
He looked at her oddly, "Yes, and she wanted me to say that she had the flu. Why do you ask?"  
  
Ms. H. smiled slightly, "I have the feeling that we should call back the school and say that Hekele caught Kagome's flu virus..." Her father paused and nodded in agreement.  
  
***********************************************************  
  
Feudal Era; with Inuyasha and Kagome:  
  
"What do you mean that Shippo is gone!!!!!!!!!!" Kagome started crying, having been told by a frantic Sango and a worried Miroku that Shippo had been kidnapped. Inuyasha was looking down, not wanting to show his worry. Then he caught a peculiar scent in the air. He sniffed it for a moment and his jaw dropped.  
  
"K-Kagome? Um...I think your friend decided to pay us a visit..." Kagome looked at him oddly and gasped as she saw Hekele round the corner of the path and stop. She had seen Kagome and Inuyasha and waved happily. Sango stared at Hekele for a moment, noticing how oddly she dressed. Kagome always wore bright colors; this girl seemed to like dark ones. She had oddly designed black pants with chains as well as a white sleeveless shirt, (that was making the Houshi drool,) which said, what was it...Evanescence? She even had an odd black hat on. This girl was strange, but it was easy to tell that she was from Kagome's time. Miroku took one look at the new girl and dropped his jaw. She was wearing a white shirt that had a nice view of her chest. He really didn't notice anything else, those baggy black pants with chains didn't offer the best view of her rear, but he could still manage to make out her nice figure. Her eyes were slightly covered by her odd black hat, but he could make out piercing blue eyes underneath the shadow. She was lovely...odd, but lovely.  
  
*So this is Hekele...* Sango and Miroku thought together. Hekele walked up to Kagome, whose jaw was gaping at the fact that her friend was there in the Feudal Era. She smiled as warmly as her friend's reaction would allow and held out a jewel shard.  
  
"You dropped this on the other side, I thought you might need it..." Hekele said calmly. Kagome took the shard from her cautiously and put it in the jar with the rest of the shards. Then she looked her friend over and noticed her katana and sais were with her. She also had her over sized red backpack that rivaled Kagome's.  
  
"Hekele, why did you bring your weapons?" she asked calmly. Hekele shifted a little.  
  
"Well...I didn't know what to expect here and I didn't want to be caught off guard..." she said sheepishly, knowing that Kagome was going to ask about her pack next. Which she did.  
  
"...and what about your backpack???" Kagome asked smoothly. Hekele pretended to laugh.  
  
"Umm, I, uh, that is to say, uh...I wanted to stay and help...I'm not weak, not as strong as a hanyou, or a demon, but I'm not weak either. I think that with extra help that you can be better off and it would be easier on you all, and I really want to help. Kagome don't give me that look, you should have seen this coming you know how I hate being alone and combined with my urge to help friends you should have known that I would want to come, and anyway-" her rapid excuses were cut off by Sango and Miroku.  
  
"We'd love the extra help! If you can truly use that katana of yours it could prove quite useful." Sango said, despite the look that Kagome was giving her. Hekele smiled at the vote of confidence...that is until she felt a hand give her ass a healthy squeeze. She turned ridged for a second, and then in one swift fluid motion she had Miroku on the ground and her katana out of its sheath, pointed to Miroku's throat. Everyone was giving her impressed looks as she spoke in a deadly serious tone to the offending Houshi.  
  
"If you EVER touch my ass again, your head will be rolling down a hill and your corpse will be shark bait, you got it?" she asked as calmly as if she was talking about the weather. Miroku flinched at the sight of her blade and nodded. She removed her katana and returned it to its sheath as skillfully as a samurai. She turned back to Kagome, "Please tell me you don't know that perverted freak." Kagome froze for a moment and laughed, hard. Sango was staring at Hekele in awe and admiration. Inuyasha was snickering evilly in the back round while Miroku was backing up quickly, frightened for his life for the first time because of a woman.  
  
Kagome stopped laughing for a moment to answer Hekele, "Oh, don't mind him, he's a little perverted. Miroku, this is Hekele, Hekele, this is Miroku. Next time he gropes you don't be ashamed of just slapping him...I think you went a little over board with the life threat."  
  
"Oh, I don't know Kagome...Miroku seems to be getting immune to our slaps and my boomerang, maybe it is time we took his punishment up a notch..." Sango said joyously. Miroku's face turned even paler if it was at all possible. Hekele snickered, got out her sais, and twirled them skillfully, which got Sango's attention.  
  
"Ooohh, what are those? I haven't seen that type of weapon before, what are they?" she asked thoughtfully. Miroku hid behind Inuyasha.  
  
"These are my sais, besides my katana they are my favorite..." Hekele answered happily. Kagome gave her a threatening look and she sheepishly put them away.  
  
"You can't stay Hekele...it's too dangerous..." Kagome said in a superior tone. Hekele scowled at her.  
  
"Oh, and it's a walk in the park for you? I said I wanted to help, and I intend to. I never said I wouldn't be in danger, I know I will be, but I don't care." she retorted. Kagome fumed.  
  
"Well I don't care if you want to help, I don't want you in danger...we're sisters now and I'd rather not have to see one of my family members buried!" she yelled.  
  
"Well I don't want to see ANOTHER one of my family members buried!!! How do you think it felt to watch everyone I ever loved be put into the ground?!? Pretty fucking bad. I went into a depression god damn it!!! If anything ever happened to the one person I have left in the world, I don't know what I'd do!!! So I'm staying and helping!!!" Hekele shouted so loud she was sure the whole of Feudal Japan could hear her. Kagome, Sango, and even Miroku looked at her in shock, while Inuyasha subconsciously nodded his head in agreement, knowing all too well how she felt. Sango did the same after a moment of processing the information. She understood how it felt to watch everyone you know and trust die. Hell, her own brother was their killer...but she couldn't blame him, it was Naraku's fault. Suddenly she remembered Shippo.  
  
"Um, Kagome, we still need to find Shippo..." she said slowly. That brought everyone back to their senses. Hekele thought for a moment.  
  
"Kags, isn't Shippo the kitsune you told me about?" she asked. Kagome nodded sadly. Inuyasha spoke up.  
  
"Any idea who took 'em?" he asked. Sango and Miroku shook their heads.  
  
"Where was he last you saw him?" he questioned. Sango and Miroku led the way to where they had last seen the kitsune, Hekele following everyone silently. She was still a bit hurt that her friend hadn't wanted her help. When they got to the spot Inuyasha turned ridged and he growled a low growl.  
  
"What do you smell?" Kagome asked knowingly. Inuyasha spoke with one of the darkest voices imaginable.  
  
"Sesshoumaru." he growled. With that he took off into the woods. Sango's Kirara turned into her big form and everyone climbed on. When they caught up to Inuyasha he was in a clearing staring at the kitsune's captor. He resembled Inuyasha with his silver hair and golden eyes but that's where it ended. His hair was strait and silky and framed a nicely shaped face that held his demon markings. The demon was wearing clothes of high nobility.  
  
*Probably a lord...* Hekele thought, in awe of his good looks. Inuyasha was saying something and Hekele shook her head to get herself out of biscuit land.  
  
"Sesshoumaru!!! What the hell did you do with Shippo!!!" Inuyasha yelled. Sesshoumaru kept his calm expression as he spoke.  
  
"He's fine...all I needed him for was to lure you out..." he said. Revealing a cage that was behind him. Shippo was in it moping. Hekele gasped at Sesshoumaru's handsome voice...she was back in biscuit land.  
  
Kagome saw her friend and looked at her oddly, "Hekele...are you ok?" she asked. Hekele nodded.  
  
"Biscuit...total biscuit...total, total biscuit..." she mumbled, nodding to Sesshoumaru, whose calm face was now one of mild confusion. Inuyasha lost his cool just as Kagome burst out laughing. She had never seen a person so close to being and acting like a Goth at one moment turn completely into another person in the next.  
  
"What the hell does that mean?!? What is a biscuit? What does it mean...this nickname was annoying enough when you said I was one...now you are calling him one...What does it mean!!!" Inuyasha yelled as Kagome nearly fell over with laughter. Sango and Miroku looked at Kagome and Hekele oddly as Inuyasha fumed.  
  
Sesshoumaru was slightly angered that the group could be distracted from him and his hostage so easily, "Yes wench, what does that idiotic word mean exactly?" This sent Kagome off again. She walked over to Sango and whispered in her ear, just low enough that the distracted Inuyasha couldn't hear. Sango's face turned red with her newly found information as she tried to keep from laughing. Inuyasha looked back at the three girls; Kagome was laughing, Sango was snickering, and Hekele was just out of it.  
  
"What the hell is going on here?!? What does biscuit mean!!!" he yelled. Sesshoumaru glared at them for an answer to his nickname. Kagome noticed this, took a step forward, and cleared her throat.  
  
"I will tell you what it means Sesshoumaru, IF you let Shippo go!" she stated firmly. Sesshoumaru grinned.  
  
"You actually think I want to know what some stupid word means enough to jeopardize my plan?" he asked. Kagome shrugged as Inuyasha lost all patience and ran at Sesshoumaru with his sword drawn and transformed. Sesshoumaru drew his sword and blocked it skillfully. The fight was on.  
  
(OOC: This is my first battle scene, so it will be short and sweet, hopefully...)  
  
Sesshoumaru jabbed at Inuyasha and Inuyasha dodged, barely. Inuyasha began to swing at Sesshoumaru blindly and missed as Sesshoumaru parried expertly and counter attacked with his poison claws. The two continued their deadly dance, with Sesshoumaru obviously having the upper hand.  
  
"Doesn't Inuyasha know how to fight? He keeps trying to use the same two attacks, Kaze no Kizu and Shizinketsu, why won't he try smaller attacks until he has an opening for those two, I mean, they are bigger attacks right?" Hekele asked as she focused on the battle, no longer in biscuit land for the moment.  
  
Miroku responded, "I do not know, Inuyasha has had the same technique of fighting since I have joined Lady Kagome and himself, and he has always made it out alive." Hekele glared at him.  
  
"If he doesn't broaden his methods his opponents will be able to guess at his moves and read his body language better. Knowing more attacks and skills are essential, if he knows more then he can create better combinations and even feign an attack on an opponent, creating an opening for something stronger. He needs to learn to fight or else he is going to get himself killed!!!" she yelled. She knew Miroku was only half listening, her ranting and raving was mostly a diversion so that Kagome and Sango could get to Shippo and free him. With the two dog boys locked in battle not much was needed, but she yelled none the less for insurance. She knew she was right, however, but would not truly speak her mind until after the battle. She looked to her side and noticed that Kagome was carrying Shippo in her arms with Sango close behind her. *Good, the kitsune is safe.* she thought, just as Inuyasha was thrown to the ground, his sword torn from his grip. Inuyasha was bloody and helpless. Hekele didn't want to watch this, she knew that he was going to die, Sesshoumaru was standing above him with his sword raised. Hekele closed her eyes, but never heard the blade swing. She looked up and saw Sesshoumaru hesitating. *Why is he hesitating? Something isn't right...* she thought as the large demon paused as if sniffing the air. *What does he smell?* She looked in the direction he was sniffing in.  
  
"Kagome, I'm going to check it out," she whispered to her friend. Kagome pleaded her with her eyes not to but Hekele was already slinking into the trees. She walked towards where Sesshoumaru had been sniffing, not knowing what lay ahead. She came to a clearing and saw a boy with brown hair in a ponytail with a sickle strapped to his back. She guessed he was human because of his ratty clothes. No demon child who looked human would wear a peasant's clothes. Hekele had figured that out for herself. She stayed close to the trees and followed him silently for a few minutes until he came to another clearing with a little girl and a toad-like demon who looked very miserable as the girl was putting flowers on him. It was then that she noticed how glazed over the boy's eyes looked. They were completely lifeless. She panicked as he raised his sickle. *Why isn't that toad smelling him?* It was then that she realized that the boy was downwind. The wind was blowing in his direction so the demon couldn't detect him. She saw as the boy prepared to throw his sickle at the two. *Shit!!!* she thought as she ran at the boy and socked him in the cheek ,just as he released the sickle. It veered off and landed near the toad. The thing jumped in panic and grabbed a two-headed staff that was near him. He spoke some gibberish and fire came out of one of the heads. Hekele was thrown out of the way as the boy with the sickle lunged at her, pinning her to the ground. She kneed the boy in his stomach and threw him off of her. The boy grabbed his sickle and threw it at her. Hekele blocked it with her now unsheathed katana but the sickle's chain was wrapped around it. The boy pulled on the sickle and the chain went taut. It was a test of will as they stood steadfast for a few moments, each weighing his or her own options for the next move. Finally Hekele pulled harder on her katana, willing the boy to stumble. She took the few precious seconds she had to get as close to him as she could before he regained his balance. A mere meter from him and his newly released sickle narrowly missed her. She lunged at him, pinning him to the ground as she drew one of her sai and held it to his neck. The toad-like creature emerged from the brush with the little girl close behind. The toad looked at Hekele wide-eyed as the girl stared at the boy, who was trembling slightly.  
  
"Are you two alright? He didn't get you did he?" Hekele didn't think he had, but she wanted to be sure.  
  
"No, Rin and Jakken-sama are ok." said the little girl. Hekele smiled, the girl was so cute when she referred to herself in third person. She was quickly brought back to reality as the boy squirmed beneath her.  
  
"Why did you attack them? What did they ever do to you? Answer me kid!" she yelled at him. The boy's face reflected pure evil as he smiled at her, and she could have sworn she saw something, or someone, else in his eyes. He lost consciousness. Hekele carefully got off of him and walked back to the girl and toad.  
  
"Thank you for the assistance but we could have handled it ourselves. I would have smelled him," the toad said superiorly. Hekele glared at him.  
  
"Obviously not because he was downwind from you, you couldn't even smell me coming!!! He would have sliced you two in half if I hadn't interjected!" she retorted. She and the toad glared at each other while the Rin went back into the clearing. She reappeared with a necklace of flowers and handed it to Hekele.  
  
"Rin wants to say thank you to you for helping Rin and Jakken-sama, here!" she said cheerfully. Hekele smiled again and put the necklace on. Rin squealed with delight and started dancing around happily. Just then a flash of white and silver came darting through the trees and stopped between Rin and Hekele. Hekele jumped in surprise as Sesshoumaru glared at her darkly, she had actually forgotten about his and Inuyasha's dual for the moment. She glanced at Jakken and noticed him pale considerably. Rin was bouncing up and down again, quite happy.  
  
"What are you doing here wench?" he asked darkly as he side glanced at Rin as if to make sure she was alright. Before Hekele could answer, or yell at him for calling her wench, he turned to Jakken, "What happened? Where is the brat? I could smell him all during our dual. Answer me!!!" he yelled as his demonic features from before seemed to double in ferociousness. Jakken started to stutter an answer when Rin interrupted.  
  
"Rin was making Jakken-sama pretty when we were almost hit by his weapon. She stopped him." Rin said, pointing to Hekele, who smiled sheepishly, "Then the two started fighting when Jakken-sama jumped and tried to use his staff but he missed. The two were fighting and she won. He sort of fell asleep over there..." Rin finished, pointing to the brush. Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at Hekele when Rin mentioned that the boy had 'fallen asleep', but Hekele merely nodded and mouthed the word 'unconscious' to him. Sesshoumaru glanced in the direction of the boy and sniffed the air as if to confirm this and gave her a slight nod. His features disappeared much to Hekele's relief as he spoke to her.  
  
"I thank you for saving Rin, I am in your debt." he said placidly. Hekele actually smiled.  
  
"Don't think anything of it, you don't need to repay me, I don't help people so that I can take advantage of their generosity." she said truthfully. Sesshoumaru stared at her for a moment, as if analyzing her for lies, but his instincts and nose told him she was being honest.  
  
"I, Sesshoumaru, am the Lord of the West, I repay my debts according to the service provided, you can not take advantage of me," he said calmly. Hekele understood that he had his personal dignity and would not relent, so she accepted.  
  
"If that is what you wish." was all she said as she turned around and began to walk towards the group before pausing and looking back at Sesshoumaru, "If I find Inuyasha in a dead, bloody heap on the ground I'm gonna have to come after you, you do realize that don't you?" she asked. Sesshoumaru glared at her and was mildly amused to find an identical glare returning it.  
  
*She is either a very brave girl or a very stupid girl, only times will tell.* "Hm, the pathetic hanyou lives." he said passively. Hekele smiled, nodded, and turned to Rin.  
  
"Bye, Rin, see you soon ok?" she said as the little girl bounded after and gave her a huge hug. Rin smiled and nodded as she let Hekele go. Hekele nodded to Sesshoumaru and was about to jog back to her friends when, to her surprise, they jumped right in front of her. Inuyasha, (who had Kagome on his back,) landed, at the most, 6 cm. in front of her. She, almost literally, jumped out of her skin. Inuyasha glared past her at Sesshoumaru.  
  
"What the hell do you think you are doing leaving in the middle of our fight?!? We weren't done yet!!!" he yelled. Hekele glared at him for yelling in her ear, even though not at her, causing him to look at her oddly, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU STARING AT?!?!?!" he yelled at her, causing her to flinch. Sesshoumaru's expression darkened a bit as Rin cringed behind him in fear. Hekele noticed as well.  
  
"Inuyasha, don't yell like that in front of Rin! You're scaring her! You should know better!" she retorted darkly, "And I was staring at you for yelling in my ear even though you were mad at HIM!" she said, nodding to Sesshoumaru, who blinked in slight confusion. Hekele and Inuyasha looked as though they were about to have a show down when they heard Sango's cry of surprise as the boy from earlier awoke and appeared from the brush.  
  
"KOHAKU!!!" The boy took one look at her and ran. Sango gave chase but the boy disappeared. Hekele saw the sadness and desperation in her eyes. Miroku put a supportive arm around her but didn't try to cop a feel, which surprised Hekele.  
  
*Wow, this must be really bad if he is being good...* she thought. All pervious anger was forgotten as everyone, (minus Sesshoumaru, Rin, and Jakken, ) comforted Sango. *****************  
  
Hekele was sitting below a tree listening to Evanescence on her CD player as she watched the scene before her. Kagome was talking to Sango and Inuyasha was sitting quietly next to Miroku before the fire they had built. Rin had insisted on playing with Shippo and Hekele for a while so Sesshoumaru decided to stay with them for the night so that Rin could be entertained. He acted as though it were a curse if the girl was upset, but everyone could tell that he just wanted her to be happy for simply the fact that he cared. Jakken was sitting opposite of Inuyasha and Miroku while Sesshoumaru himself was sitting alone under a tree staring at the stars. Hekele smiled a bit. He wasn't as cold-hearted as he wanted to seem, Rin was proof of that. Hekele thought intently about what she had been told in the past few hours. The boy she had fought, Kohaku, was Sango's little brother. Naraku was controlling him and that is why he attacked Rin and Jakken. Naraku had 'killed' him and re-animated his body using a Shikon shard, including his soul. His memories were erased but from time to time he would remember certain things before Naraku blocked them out again. Sango was determined to save Kohaku from Naraku, and to bring him 'back to life' somehow. Hekele knew how she felt...all she wished for was her family sometimes, but it was and always would be out of reach. She was glad that Sango still had a chance to save her brother, and decided to aid her in any way that she could. She then recalled being told about Sesshoumaru. She had had to fight a snicker when she found out that he and Inuyasha were half brothers. Sesshoumaru was the Lord of the Western lands, and carried the swords Tenseiga and the Tokijin. Tenseiga was a sword that could heal one hundred demons/humans at one time if used properly. The Tenseiga and Inuyasha's sword Tetsusaiga were both carved from their father's own fangs. The reason that the two were feuding and wanting to kill each other all the time was because of these swords. Sesshoumaru could not see why the Tetsusaiga was left to Inuyasha, when he, (Sesshoumaru,) was the older and much more skilled brother. The Tetsusaiga, unlike the Tenseiga, could destroy one hundred demons/humans at once if used correctly. Hekele sighed at the thought of the two feuding brothers. *Why is it that men never talked about how they felt? They always have to solve everything with violence...* Hekele smiled as Rin walked up to her. She took off her headphones and hit pause on her CD player. She was going to give the little girl her full attention. Rin handed Hekele a flower and giggled when it turned into Shippo. Hekele laughed, she had forgotten that kitsunes could change their shape and form. Rin crawled into her lap and Shippo crawled into Rin's.  
  
"What's that?" Rin asked, pointing to Hekele's CD player. Hekele smiled.  
  
"It plays music from my time. See this round disk? It has the music inside it, but you can't hear it without the player and headphones." Hekele explained, pointing to each item as she mentioned it. Rin nodded slowly, trying to understand.  
  
"Can I listen?" Rin asked. Hekele nodded and played the song 'Imaginary' for her. Rin squealed in delight. Hekele noticed how sleepy she and Shippo were so she situated them comfortably on her lap. She opened her red backpack, pulled out a nice warm blanket, and wrapped it around the two children. She rocked them back and forth slowly as she hummed to them. Rin nestled into the crook of Hekele's neck as she began singing openly.  
  
"In my dream I break the chains that hold this place together. But in my dream the consequences would be so much better, than they are. And beyond the walls that hold us here, The skies that stretch across the atmosphere, ohh, and revolution is near."  
  
Hekele paused a moment as Rin curled up into a tight ball in her lap, and then she continued.  
  
"In my room I hear the echoes of a recent battle. Lost and wounded as the faded cries begin to settle, for the night. But the words you use to hurt me now only seem to make me strong somehow, Ohh, a revolution is now!"  
  
Sesshoumaru was listening to Hekele's song, more intently than he would have liked to admit to himself. He was transfixed by her voice. He could hear Rin's breathing even out, meaning that sleep would soon claim her. As Hekele sang she was stroking Rin's soft black hair gently to help soothe her. Shippo was already asleep. Hekele had paused again, almost as if she were going to stop singing all together, but picked up again.  
  
"And the days will get warmer, and I'll lay down my armor...yaa Together we can fight this feeling. And the demons that stalk us will eventually turn to dust...yaa. Together we can start this healing, ohh oh, ya ya yaa ya"  
  
Hekele started humming after that, still stroking Rin's hair. She replayed the song in her head as she did. She was oblivious to the stares she was getting from the rest of the group. Jakken had his mouth open partially, Sango was staring in awe, Miroku was wondering where she got such a lovely voice, Kagome was smiling proudly, and Inuyasha growled a bit.  
  
*No one sings better than Kagome...but she isn't that bad...* he thought to himself.  
  
Sesshoumaru was looking at Hekele from the corner of his eye. *She is truly lovely.* he thought, permitting himself a glance at her profile, which, he noted, he could barely see with those baggy pants. Hekele was now also wearing an over-sized sweatshirt to stay warm. If Sesshoumaru didn't have his wondrous sense of smell, he could have sworn she was a demon. Her hair was short, (midway to her shoulders,) and yellow with red flames starting about halfway from the top. She looked very content with the two children in her lap as she herself drifted off into sleep. Sesshoumaru closed his eyes but stayed alert. He couldn't help but wonder who exactly this Hekele girl was, and how she knew this group of imbeciles. He allowed his mind to wander about her a moment, until he actually felt himself fall into a calming sleep, his last conscious thought was an odd one, however. *What the hell is a biscuit?*  
  
*************************************************************  
  
*Me* So, what did you all think???  
  
*Lawyers* (grumble, grumble, grumble.)  
  
*Me* Good, now that that's settled, I think I'll give you a quick tidbit from the next chappie to keep you happy, here goes:  
  
Hekele tossed Sango the rose scented shower gel, "Here, I think you'll like this stuff!" Sango opened the container and inhaled the gel's scent.  
  
"Wow Hekele, it smells just like roses!!! And this 'sponge' really makes your skin shine more!!!" she said as she scrubbed her arms and legs.  
  
"Let Rin try next, let Rin try next!!!" said Rin as she splashed around joyously, causing Hekele, Kagome, and Sango to laugh. Sango handed Rin the sponge and rose-scented product and Rin washed her arms and laughed as the scent reached her nose. Hekele scrubbed her back and smiled, it was nice to play the older sister again, she remembered taking care of her younger brother when he was young, and she had missed it. She washed the last of the lather from Rin's back and was about to get out of the hot spring when she heard Kagome and Sango gasp.  
  
"What is it? What's wrong?" she asked them.  
  
"W-where did you get all of those scars?!? You are worse than Sango and me! What happened?" Kagome questioned in a motherly tone. Sango nodded anxiously. Rin looked at Hekele's back and winced, as if an imaginary pain was hitting her. Hekele grimaced but recovered quickly with a fake smile.  
  
"Oh, those? You know I skateboard Kagome, AND you know how clumsy I am, they're nothing more than past injuries from falling and stuff," she said quickly as she got out of the hot spring and dressed herself. Kagome looked at Sango skeptically, as if asking a question. Sango nodded.  
  
"It looks more like a beating to me..." Sango prodded. Hekele flinched, they knew they had her.  
  
"Who did it?" Kagome asked softly. Hekele sighed sadly, all she wanted to do was curl up into a ball in a fifty-foot hole at this moment and not crawl back out EVER.  
  
"Who else?" she whispered quietly, not wanting the tears that were threatening her eyes to fall, "My father..."  
  
What'cha think??? You wanna read??? This chappie is gonna give a bit of insight into Hekele's past, and I will also talk more about my friend Kachie, I hope you review...I need some ideas AND I need to know who to dedicate my next chapter to....and if no one seems worthy......I WILL DEDICATE IT TO KIKYO AND NARAKU!!!!!!!! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!! Ok, not Kikyo....i could never stoop that low if my life depended on it...but Naraku I can and WILL do!!! So send me a few reviews and I will choose a winner!!! 


	5. Roses and Salt

Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Ok, aren't you happy that I posted the latest chappie?!?!?!?!  
  
I dedicate this chapter to my boyfriend, who has no idea that I am obsessed with anime, or Sesshoumaru...I love him and his ignorance. (Go Kurt!!! I love you!!!)  
  
Alright, I promised info on Kachie, so here goes:  
  
Kachie Runa has been my best friend since the fifth grade, (now we are in the ninth.) It was she that introduced me to the wonderful world of anime. She is a very skilled artist and I am her manager, meaning I show off her work, promote her skills, and threaten teachers who loose or allow her valuable, (in my opinion and theirs as well,) artwork to be stolen. I am not kidding, I scared the art teacher when I discovered that one of her pictures had been stolen, we never did find it........-_- Well, I had better get on to the story....  
Disclaimer: I own nothing, zip, zilch, nada, so don't go suing me you thieving lawyers you!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
*********************************************************  
  
Roses and Salt  
  
Feudal Era:  
  
Hekele woke up to bickering. *Damn....why can't I ever be woken up peacefully???* she thought as she saw Sango and Miroku arguing. Well, Sango was arguing and Miroku was backing away quickly. Hekele quietly lifted the children off of her lap and walked over to Miroku and Sango. Seeing Hekele awake, Sango immediately smiled. Miroku looked at her oddly before getting one hell of a hit upside the head and falling over. Hekele gritted her teeth and walked back over to where she had been sleeping and curled up on the ground. She was muttering about how stupid the world was and how she could never get any sleep.  
Sango looked at her new friend's retreating figure and laughed. Hekele looked like one board short of a shipwreck in the morning. Kagome was smiling knowingly and Inuyasha was laughing openly. Sesshoumaru's face didn't hold a smile but he too was amused. Jakken was trying to enjoy his time away from Rin while it lasted and couldn't help but snicker. Eventually, everyone but Sesshoumaru lost it and started laughing their heads off, Jakken included. Hekele opened one eye and stared at them all. She looked positively evil. Everyone shut up as she stood up and walked back over to them. Rin and Shippo woke up in all the commotion and were looking at everyone cutely, not fully realizing what was about to happen.  
Hekele stopped a good meter in front of them, getting into as many faces at once as she could. Suddenly Inuyasha remembered what happened to the last thing that woke her up...complete destruction. He edged away from the group knowingly and was followed by Kagome, whom had also caught on to what was going to happen. Sesshoumaru eyed the two suspiciously. Inuyasha decided to show some compassion for once for his half-brother. He took his finger and made a slicing motion across his own throat to signify death. Sesshoumaru wasn't afraid, however, and didn't heed his younger sibling's warning. Suddenly, all hell broke loose.  
  
"I WAS JUST TRYING TO SLEEP GODDAMN IT!!! I HAVEN'T SLEPT FOR MORE THAN TWO FRIGGIN' HOURS A NIGHT IN THE PAST MONTH LET ALONE THE PAST THREE DAYS!!!!!! ALL I WANT TO DO IS GET SOME DECENT SLEEP FOR A CHANGE!!!!!!!!!! AND ALL I HAVE HEARD IN THE PAST THREE DAYS WAS A VERY ANNOYING ALARM CLOCK, A HELL OF A LOT OF BICKERING, AND LOTS AND LOTS OF LAUGHTER...DO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO THE POOR, DEFENCLESS, NON-LIVING ALARM CLOCK?!?!?!?! IT IS A PILE OF TRASH RIGHT NOW, AND IF YOU PEOPLE WAKE ME UP THIS EARLY TOMORROW, YOU WILL BE TOO!!!!!" she yelled so loud that Inuyasha swore the entire country would hear her.  
  
Sesshoumaru was in a small state of shock after her outburst, and it showed. He kept blinking in a very confused, stunned way that would normally have made Inuyasha laugh, but now wasn't the time. Sesshoumaru regained his composure quickly, still a bit surprised and noticed how quiet it had gotten. He looked around, hearing whispers, but seeing people talking openly. At first he was confused then the ringing in his ears stopped and he heard everything loud and clear. His eyes got a hint wider. *That bitch almost made me go deaf! Me! Sesshoumaru! A dog demon with outstanding hearing nearly made deaf by a little girl!!!* Sesshoumaru growled low in his throat, causing Inuyasha to snicker, for he could tell what was going on. Suddenly, the group heard a shout and a slap. Inuyasha rolled his eyes and Sesshoumaru looked at the now semi-conscious monk with disgust.  
  
*Men of status should not act so indecently, especially when they know they can't get away with it...What is that wench doing?* Sesshoumaru asked himself as he saw Hekele walk up to Miroku with some silver stuff on a roll.  
  
"Sango, hold Miroku's wrists, I have an idea..." she said as she pulled part of the silver off the roll. Sango complied and saw with joy as Miroku's hands were bound together in one giant ball covered in the silver, sticky stuff. Sango released his wrists as Hekele bound them for insurance. Miroku looked at them oddly and tried to get the wrapping off but couldn't.  
  
"What is this stuff??? I can't get out of it!" he became frantic, not being able to move his hands. Hekele wrapped a single, long band of the stuff around his ankles so he couldn't walk.  
  
"What gives?!? Hey! Get this stuff off!!!" his usually calm composure now gone. Inuyasha laughed.  
  
"Now you know why stuff from their time scares me!!!" he said. Miroku continued to plead until Hekele got sick of hearing him and put one smaller band of the stuff over his mouth. He was silent. Everyone looked at Hekele fondly and questioningly, Sesshoumaru just questioningly.  
  
"Duck tape. You can fix, immobilize, or shut-up anything with duck tape! Duck tape holds the world together...quack..." she said happily. "Now, I saw a hot spring about a quarter of a mile back and am going to take a dip, Sango, Kagome, you want to come?" The two girls nodded and Rin ran up.  
  
"Rin wants to know if Rin can come too!" she pleaded cutely.  
  
"I don't mind Rin, but you should ask Sesshoumaru first..." she said. Rin ran up to Sesshoumaru and asked him the same question. He looked at Hekele oddly, wondering if she wanted him to bail her out of dealing with Rin or was truly asking permission first. Hekele smiled warmly at him and nodded. He understood and gave Rin consent to go. She jumped with joy and ran after Hekele, Sango, and Kagome.  
The boys looked around for a moment, wondering what to do. Sesshoumaru actually felt out of place, he didn't know how to deal with being alone with his half-brother and not killing him. He saw Inuyasha and Shippo gather firewood so that breakfast could be made when the girls got back, and Jakken was staring at Miroku, wondering if Sesshoumaru would do the same thing to him next time he lost Rin. Sesshoumaru decided to go sit under a tree and wait for something to happen, he was quite bored. When Inuyasha returned perhaps he would strike a conversation, just to relieve his boredom.  
  
**********************************************************  
  
At the spring:  
  
Hekele was feeling much better, the warm water was waking her up and she was feeling more refreshed. She washed her arms with the sponge and tossed another one to Sango. Sango looked at Hekele oddly.  
  
"It's a sponge, you wash yourself with it and it exfoliates your skin." Kagome interjected, scrubbing a day's worth of dirt and dead skin off with another of Hekele's sponges. Sango pretended to know what exfoliating was and just scrubbed her arms, knowing that should she ask she wouldn't understand the explanation anyway. She happily noticed that her skin was scrubbing cleaner than usual, she guessed that it had to do with the 'exfoliating'.  
  
Hekele tossed Sango the rose scented shower gel, "Here, I think you'll like this stuff!" Sango opened the container and inhaled the gel's scent.  
  
"Wow Hekele, it smells just like roses!!! And this 'sponge' really makes your skin shine more!!!" she said as she scrubbed her arms and legs longer.  
  
"Let Rin try next, let Rin try next!!!" said Rin as she splashed around joyously, causing Hekele, Kagome, and Sango to laugh. Sango handed Rin the sponge and rose-scented product and Rin washed her arms and laughed as the scent reached her nose. Hekele scrubbed her back and smiled, it was nice to play the older sister again, she remembered taking care of her younger brother when he was young, and she had missed it. She washed the last of the lather from Rin's back and was about to get out of the hot spring when she heard Kagome and Sango gasp.  
  
"What is it? What's wrong?" she asked them.  
  
"W-where did you get all of those scars?!? You are worse than Sango and me! What happened?" Kagome questioned in a motherly tone. Sango nodded anxiously. Rin looked at Hekele's back and winced, as if an imaginary pain was hitting her. Hekele grimaced but recovered quickly with a fake smile.  
  
"Oh, those? You know I skateboard Kagome, AND you know how clumsy I am, they're nothing more than past injuries from falling and stuff," she said quickly as she got out of the hot spring and dressed herself. Kagome looked at Sango skeptically, as if asking a question. Sango nodded.  
  
"It looks more like a beating to me..." Sango prodded. Hekele flinched, they knew they had her.  
  
"Who did it?" Kagome asked softly. Hekele sighed sadly; all she wanted to do was curl up into a ball in a fifty-foot hole at this moment and not crawl back out...EVER.  
  
"Who else?" she whispered quietly, not wanting the tears that were threatening her eyes to fall, "My father..."  
  
Sango gasped, "Your father? But why would he do such a thing? You are such a good person and-" she was cut off by Kagome.  
  
"I didn't know this was an ongoing thing...I thought what happened last time was the first sign of violence from him..." she asked soothingly, (referring to Hekele's family's death,) as she got out and dressed. Sango and Rin did the same.  
  
"No...it wasn't, but no one believed me when I told them about the hitting, and the cutting..." she said as her tears finally fell at her dark memories. Sango gave Hekele a small hug and let her cry, and Kagome did the same. When they let go Rin ran up and hugged her around her neck. Rin was never abused, except for that one time from the villagers, but she had been deprived of a family, and she had also died, but her Lord Sesshoumaru had brought her back to life with his sword and he took care of her too. Then Rin got her first brilliant idea, well, besides all her ways of tormenting Jakken, (which are also brilliant...just more subtle.)  
  
*Maybe Sesshoumaru-sama can make Rin's friend Hekele happy too!* Rin thought to herself with a small smile wanting to tug at her lips. But how to do it? Sesshoumaru-sama wasn't one to just be nice, but Rin was sure that she could find a way to make him be nice to Hekele. Hekele was still sobbing, however, so now wasn't the time to be thinking of that, Rin would need to find a way to make Hekele a little happier for now until she could form a plan.  
  
Kagome was hugging Hekele again and letting her sob. She had had no idea that her friend had withheld so much pain and sadness inside of herself, but since it was there, she was going to let her friend pour it out. It wasn't the best thing to keep everything bottled up inside, so she let her friend's tears flow.  
  
Sango was looking helpless, not knowing whether to hug Hekele as well or take Rin back to the camp and give the two some time to talk. *Wait...* she thought, somewhat frantically as she looked around, *Where's Rin!!!*  
Suddenly the small girl ran out of the bushes with a huge bouquet of flowers for Hekele. They were all very lovely, long stemmed wild flowers, which, unbeknownst to her, were some of Hekele's favorites. She held the bouquet out in front of Hekele and smiled at her warmly.  
  
"Rin has a present for you!" she said sweetly as she handed her the flowers, Hekele couldn't help but smile at the thoughtful girl as she accepted them and inhaled their fresh, sweet scent. Rin smiled happily as she did so.  
  
"Why don't we head back now? I'm sure the boys are hungry..." Hekele stated, regaining her composure. Kagome and Sango exchanged worried looks for the second time that morning.  
  
"Are you sure?" Sango asked. Hekele nodded. Kagome and Sango gave up and gathered the rest of their supplies and started heading back to camp. Hekele and Rin followed, Rin not letting go of Hekele's hand.  
  
*********************************************************  
  
Camp:  
  
Miroku was still trapped in duck tape, but was also now bound to a tree due to Inuyasha and Shippo's own boredom. Jakken had started the fire and Sesshoumaru was staring into it with a bemused expression. Suddenly an out of place scent reached his nose. Salt. Tears. He glanced at Inuyasha and Shippo, they had smelled it as well. Sesshoumaru's expression darkened. If anyone had made Rin cry, there would be more than hell to pay. What he saw when the girls rounded the bend into camp surprised him. The human Hekele was the source of the scent. The proof of tears was evident on her face, but only to one who could smell the salt of her tears and notice the slight puffiness of her eyes. Yes, she was good at hiding it. She was smiling and talking to Rin as though nothing had happened, and had he not been a demon, he would have fallen for her ruse. The girl was holding a bouquet of wild flowers, he guessed that Rin was responsible for that, she loved picking flowers. Something inside urged him to find the cause of Hekele's tears, but he quickly diminished that thought.  
  
*Damn, interacting with these humans has made me go soft.* he thought as Hekele sat down with Rin on her lap by the fire. Hekele looked as though she were holding onto Rin for dear life, as if should she let go her world would crumble. Everyone seemed to notice her negative feelings now...even the bound monk. Kagome decided to untie him, which proved to be a bit painful, due to the stickiness of the tape. His yelps of pain were a cheerful diversion for the group, as Hekele's emotions were becoming more and more readable as time passed.  
They decided not to travel that day, but they merely hung around doing useless tasks. Rin wanted to play with Shippo a while longer so Sesshoumaru used it as an excuse to stay another night with the group. The more and more he thought about it, the odder Hekele's sadness appeared to him. The girls had only been gone for no longer than an hour, they weren't attacked, no one was harmed in any way, and yet she had cried, and her sadness still tainted the air. Sesshoumaru saw Inuyasha pull the girl Kagome aside and assumed it was to find out what had happened. Sesshoumaru wasn't sure if she would reveal the incident or not, but he knew that Rin would if he told her to, so he called her over.  
  
********************************************************  
  
With Inuyasha and Kagome:  
  
Inuyasha pulled Kagome aside from the rest of the group and led her into a secluded part of the forest where they were out of even Sesshoumaru's earshot. Kagome knew what he was going to say, and braced herself for it.  
  
"What the hell happened today? First Hekele was pissed and then she was sad, what happened while you guys were gone?" Inuyasha asked in a demanding tone. Kagome flinched a little, she hadn't expected him to be so mean about it. She looked him dead in the eye.  
  
"She was reminiscing. Happy?" she asked, not wanting to go into a full assault on Hekele's secret, after all, she obviously didn't want anyone knowing. Inuyasha wasn't satisfied.  
  
"Reminiscing? About what?" he said in a calmer tone, knowing that Hekele had lots to reminisce about. Kagome shrugged, acting as if she didn't know, which caused Inuyasha to growl at her a bit.  
  
"Kagome, you know I hate it when people cry, and she smelled of tears so much that I could smell it pretty far away, Sesshoumaru and Shippo could smell it too. Now what bothered her so much?" he asked, getting a little impatient. Kagome crying was one thing, he could comfort and try to apologize, (repeat, try...something always goes wrong though...) her, but Hekele was still a new person to him, he didn't a) know how to comfort her and, b) didn't really want to, he just wanted to be sure that he hadn't done something to make her cry like he always did with Kagome. He wanted Hekele happy again, but he wasn't going to go out of his way to help if he wasn't the cause. Now that he had seen how tough she was, he understood that she didn't need his pity, so he treated her just like everyone else, arrogantly.  
  
"Her family..." Kagome said truthfully. This seemed to satisfy Inuyasha, who nodded. The two stayed put for a while, enjoying the other's company, but neither admitting it. Kagome was too busy thinking of how to brighten Hekele's mood, and Inuyasha was just itching to ditch Sesshoumaru and go shard hunting.  
Inuyasha wouldn't admit it, but being around Sesshoumaru hadn't been that bad, since Sesshoumaru had yet to try and kill him again. It was kind of nice to be around his older brother on descent terms for a change. Inuyasha snickered when he recalled his brother's shocked face when Hekele had had her outburst that morning. It had been satisfying to see him loose most of his hearing for even those few seconds. Inuyasha was deep in thought about what would happen if he and his brother actually...talked to one another for once. They hadn't said much of anything to each other while they had been together the past day and night. What was there to say? But still, Inuyasha didn't want to hate his brother forever. He kind of wished they could be more civil, like other brothers, but he knew that it could never happen.  
  
********************************************************  
  
With the rest of the group:  
  
Sesshoumaru called Rin over to where he sat under the tree. She bounded over to him curiously and sat in front of him politely.  
  
"What happened today at the hot springs? The girl Hekele has been acting oddly and it is not understood why," he said passively, not wanting to let the little girl in front of him to know that he was actually interested. Rin smiled inwardly at her Sesshoumaru-sama's concern. She could tell that he really wanted to know, but it still surprised her a bit that he asked.  
  
"Everything was ok until Hekele-chan decided to get out. Sango-san and Kagome-san saw a bunch of scars on her back and asked her what they were from. Hekele-chan got kinda sad and said it was from her being clumsy," she said. Sesshoumaru nodded for her to continue. "And then Sango-san said that it looked like a beating to her. Hekele-chan's face got real sad and Kagome-san asked who did it and Hekele-chan said that it was her father..." Rin continued, her face faltering at the memory of her sad friend. Sesshoumaru's passive face was still plastered on, but Rin could tell that he had heard and was pondering everything that she had said. She may be very young, but Rin could tell when Sesshoumaru-sama was thinking something over, or when he was trying not to show an emotion. She had known him long enough to decipher his many moods from his always- emotionless face. Rin proceeded to tell Sesshoumaru when she had started crying and everything that was said up until Hekele decided to come back. When she finished her tale Sesshoumaru's face was very different from when the story had first began. She could see a bit of compassion in his eyes, but being the young girl she was she didn't know what exactly that meant.  
The story puzzled Sesshoumaru. He had not seen Hekele fight, however, in order to defeat Kohaku, or any of Naraku's subjects; you needed to be cunning and skilled. Kohaku true was a human, but he was also a demon slayer, and a threat to any demon. When controlled by Naraku he was an even larger threat. For Hekele to defeat him the way she did, she would have had to be a very skilled fighter, not necessarily strong, but skilled, even more so than some demons. So, the question lay in Sesshoumaru's mind, why had such abuse been allowed, even if from her father? The question still resided in Sesshoumaru after he dismissed Rin and even after sighting Inuyasha's return to the camp.  
Soon after Inuyasha and Kagome's return everyone sat down to dinner. Hekele had a knack for cooking when she was upset, so she made dinner, despite Kagome and Sango's offers to do so themselves. When she was done cooking, everyone cautiously looked into the pot at a soupy mixture. Inuyasha thought it smelled good, but it looked weirder than Kagome's cooking. Hekele got out a bunch of plastic bowls that she had packed and filled them with the soup. She handed a cup to everyone and also handed out spoons. Inuyasha sniffed the food cautiously, not trusting the scent one bit, despite its enticing composure.  
  
"What is it?" he asked as he poked it with the spoon, waiting for it to try and bite him. Hekele glared at him.  
  
"It is chicken dumpling soup. It's really good!!! I thought it looked weird when I first ate it too, so don't worry." she said as she took a bite, happy that she hadn't over cooked the canned food for once. Rin, being the polite little girl she was, took a bite and squealed in delight.  
  
"It's really yummy Hekele-chan!" she said as she took another bite. Everyone decided to trust Rin's judgment and they tried it. They all loved it.  
  
"Wow Hekele-san! This is really good!" Miroku said cheerfully. Hekele scooted closer to Sango, just in case he had alternative motives, and nodded happily. After getting some applause for her cooking of canned food, (which Hekele and Kagome thought was quite funny,) Hekele ate some more of her food. Now that she had done something to get her mind off of her troubles, she was quite happy. She looked to the side of her and noticed Sesshoumaru still sitting under the tree, not making any movement to join them. Hekele sighed, grabbed a bowl and filled it with soup for him. She knew he had his dignity, but this was ridiculous. Even demons needed to eat.  
  
*Why is he being so anti-social? He's just as bad as Inuyasha is!* she thought as she walked over to him. He looked at her oddly as she approached, and when he saw what was in her hand.  
  
Hekele held out the bowl for him to take, "Either we are going to do this the easy way and you take the food and eat, or we are going to do it the fun way and I shove it in your face, your choice." Sesshoumaru glared at her.  
  
"Are you threatening me human?" he asked in an acidic tone. Hekele glared at him back, but then smiled sweetly, which caused him to get a little edgy.  
  
"Yes, I am threatening you, Sesshoumaru, now eat the damn food, even demons are capable of starvation baka-sama!" she raised her voice a little. So what if he was the Lord of the Western lands? He still wasn't too good to eat the only decent food available to him. She watched as his demonic features grew threateningly visible, his eyes held a tinge of anger in them. How dare she threaten him, insult him with a nickname, AND not give him enough respect to add his title to his name.  
  
"What did you call me, filthy human?!" he growled at her. Hekele merely stared him down as she had done the day before, not giving an inch to his frightening features.  
  
"I called you baka-sama, idiot king, you wanna make something of it?" she said as passively as he did when talking to Rin earlier. Sesshoumaru was mildly surprised by her response, usually humans wouldn't dare even speak to a demon, let alone insult one of status! This girl was capable of many surprises, he realized, but he wouldn't give in quite yet, he wanted to see just how deep her bravery ran.  
  
"If I were you I would turn around and leave my sight at once if you want to live wench."  
  
"And who is going to make me?" Hekele persisted.  
  
"I am warning you wench..."  
  
"You seem to forget that I am the one with the bowl of food here, now, I said to myself earlier, 'Hekele, all these people eat are Ramen, maybe they would like something else to eat for once.' So, I thought I'd cook everyone, INCLUDING YOU, something more filling and tasty, but if you are going to be a jerk when all I am trying to do is be nice, then maybe I should throw this in your face!" she said as she watched his eyes widen a bit. No one had ever spoken to him in that fashion before, ever, and here this human was scolding him, HIM! Sesshoumaru! Lord of the Western lands! He made a move to speak but she beat him to it.  
  
"If you think the fact that you are a demon, OR the Lord of the Western lands has any affect on the way I will treat you, you have another thing coming baka-sama!" she said as she set the bowl at his feet and walked away with a humph. Sesshoumaru stared at her with his mouth open in shock.  
It was all everyone else could do, (minus Jakken and Rin,) not to laugh at the demon lord, whom had just been insulted multiple times by a human girl quite effectively. She had looked him in the eye, stared him down, and silenced him. It was truly a sight to be seen. Now his mouth was hanging open in pure shock, he couldn't even hide his surprise. He watched as Hekele refilled her bowl and ate more of the soup. Everyone turned back to what they were doing before the incident, leaving the demon lord to his now confused thoughts.  
  
*How the hell did that happen? That WENCH just insulted me, despite my title, despite my demon heritage, despite my counter threats, and then LEFT!!!!!!!!!!!* He ran through the argument in his head, trying to figure out where he had lost the upper hand, only to find that he had never possessed it to begin with. He couldn't help but smile inwardly when he realized this, her ability to catch him off guard and take advantage of the moment appealed to him in an odd way. No one had ever been able to that before, and he was pleasantly surprised that it was indeed possible. He couldn't help but admire her apparently limitless bravery, both on and off the battlefield. He eyed the food that had been given to him, picked it up, and took a small bite. He was a bit surprised when it actually tasted good, even though it was beginning to cool a bit. He kept taking small bites, making sure that no one was looking at him.  
Hekele glanced at Sesshoumaru through the corner of her eye and saw him eating the food. She smiled a bit and walked to a tree that was near his and climbed in, listening to her CD player again. She relaxed, her previous anxiety leaving her for the night. After about an hour or so she was feeling sleepy, so she turned off the player and let herself fall asleep in the tree. Miroku happened to walk by when he noticed her up there. He shook his head and motioned for Sango to come over. She smiled when she saw Hekele's sleeping face, which was calm and at peace.  
  
"Great, now we have two idiots sleeping in trees..." Miroku said jokingly, referring to Inuyasha, who was sitting in his own tree staring out into nothingness. Sango nodded.  
  
"Let's just hope no one wakes her up wrong tomorrow morning eh?" she said, eyeing Miroku suspiciously. He chuckled and walked back over to the fire to get some sleep. Sango did the same a few minutes later. Kagome, Shippo, Rin, and Jakken were all already sleeping peacefully. Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru had their eyes closed but couldn't have been farther from sleep. For the next few hours everything was peaceful, then trouble began.  
It was probably around two o'clock in the morning when suddenly a very large noise woke everyone up. Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru exchanged glances, neither had sensed nor smelled a demon. Hekele jumped out of her tree and joined everyone else by the fire as they wondered what could have caused the noise. Suddenly they heard it again and it was definitely closer. Hekele drew her sword as Inuyasha drew his, Sango was holding her boomerang at ready, Miroku was fingering the prayer beads on his wrist, and Kagome was holding her bow, with a miko arrow notched and ready. Sesshoumaru held his Tokijin menacingly; ready to slice anything that came from the surrounding forest to bits. For a moment nothing happened. Then a large beam of light hit everyone from behind as another noise was heard. Everyone lay on the ground and was trying to painfully pry themselves up and stand. But there were no signs of a demon. Inuyasha growled as Miroku realized what the noise was.  
  
"It's teleporting. That noise we hear is where it is going to come out next!" Everyone tensed; it would be hard to fight an enemy that could vanish, VERY hard. Rin and Shippo were whimpering and Hekele stood by them and hushed them. Another noise was heard and a beam of light, this one more painful than the last, hit them. Again everyone was knocked to the ground, Kagome was knocked out from the force of the blast, and Inuyasha looked more than just a little winded. Miroku was trying to help Sango stand, Jakken was made to stay in front to offer his fire as a barrier if needed, Sesshoumaru was standing in front of Rin, Hekele, and Shippo to keep Rin safe. Hekele wrapped her arms around Rin as Shippo ran over to Kagome. Inuyasha was already by the girl's side as she came to painfully.  
  
"Kagome? Are you ok?" the two boys asked at the same time. It was then that the attacking demon appeared before the group, laughing. It was a white tiger demon. Its body was built like a human's but with fur, a tail, fangs, and cat ears. The demon was wearing a black fighting kimono. His laugh was eerie.  
  
"The Shikon no Tama, give it to me!" the demon demanded. Inuyasha growled and stood in front of Kagome to offer protection. The demon licked his lips as he scanned the group. His eyes fell on Hekele and a trembling Rin.  
  
"Maybe I'll have a snack while I'm here...the fear radiating in the air is so tasty..." he said as he continued to eye the group. Hekele picked up her sword but stayed next to Rin. She wasn't as afraid as she should have been, but that was Hekele's nature. When her survival depended on her wits and skill, she was brave, other than that and she would be a bit mousy and hide. Rin clung to her pant leg for dear life; she had to be brave, so that Rin could be safe. She watched as the demon took a step towards the group and vanished with another bang. All eyes fell on Hekele and Rin. Hekele readied herself as Sesshoumaru back up closer to them, ready to lend his sword. When the demon didn't appear he whispered to Hekele, just loud enough for her human ears to pick up.  
  
"Take Rin and leave, we'll find you when this is over..." he said. Hekele looked to Inuyasha, knowing that he could hear what his brother had requested. When he nodded Hekele didn't hesitate to grab her backpack, (as a minor shield in case of a blow from behind,) pick up Rin, and run. When she and Rin were out of sight the demon reappeared, hitting everyone with an energy ball the size of Texas, (yeah...a little sarcastic...but close enough,) which sent them flying into the woods in pretty much every direction. Inuyasha, Kagome, and Shippo were sent far into the eastern part of the forest while Sango and Miroku were sent flying into the southern part. Jakken and Sesshoumaru were sent westward, Jakken screaming the whole while.  
  
******************************************************  
  
With Rin and Hekele:  
  
Hekele ran as fast as she could from the battle with Rin in her arms, not knowing that it was what the demon had wanted. Naraku, his master, had told him that a young girl with black hair possessed the shards that he was to get. He assumed that the girl was Rin, for she was younger than other black haired females that he had seen there. He had waited for the girl to be ushered away as he was sure a young one would be, then he struck down her companions and came after her. A perfect ruse, except that Rin wasn't the girl with the shards.  
Hekele continued to run until she heard the demon's signature bang and froze as she saw him standing before her, not five feet from her own face. She put Rin down, handed her the backpack, and drew her sword, eyeing the demon dangerously, finding her courage again in her anger.  
  
"We wouldn't happen to be running away with my shards now would we?" the demon asked menacingly. Hekele then understood why he had come.  
  
"We don't have your shards..." she said, as if willing the demon to leave. The demon grew angry and took a step forward.  
  
"Do not lie filthy humans..." he growled. Hekele shook her head and took a step back.  
  
"We aren't lying...we aren't the ones with the shards." At this the demon charged at them, his own sword drawn.  
He and Hekele locked into a battle that seemed would not end until one of them were dead. He lunged, Hekele dodged, Hekele swung, the demon ducked. They only made contact with each other's flesh a few times before the demon decided to stop playing fair. The demon stabbed Hekele in her right shoulder, causing her to drop her sword and scream in pain. Rin shrieked and dropped the bag, and the demon remembered what he had been sent for in the first place and decided to end the battle with a lethal energy blast. The energy the demon had used before was mostly for taunting the other demons and humans, as if showing his superiority to them before the actual battle, but this one was meant to kill.  
The demon launched a ball of energy sailing at Rin. Hekele ran to the girl's rescue and held her tightly as the energy ball hit her and launched the two farther into the forest. Rin was badly scratched and bruised, but nothing like Hekele, whose back was burnt and bleeding badly. Combined with her shoulder wound she was too weak to stand or even move. All she could do was hold Rin as tightly as her now failing body would allow. She screamed in pain as the demon placed a foot on her back and pressed down on it. The pain was too much to bear. Rin was crying out of fear and mild pain as the demon was squashing her as well. Hekele continued to hold onto her tightly, but was aware that her own life was rapidly ending. She was loosing too much blood too quickly and the pain was only quickening the process. The last thing she heard and saw was Rin's horrified face as she closed her eyes. She was dead.  
Rin screamed for Hekele to wake up but she would not. Suddenly, just when the demon was about to give Rin the final blow, a swoosh was heard and fire was seen burning the demon's upper body. Rin screamed in horror until she saw Sesshoumaru grab the demon and growl something fierce. Jakken ran up to Rin and helped her from under Hekele's body. Sesshoumaru sliced the dazed and now badly injured demon with his poison claws attack, killing him instantly.  
Sesshoumaru turned to find Rin shaking Hekele franticly to awaken her. He looked at Jakken who shook his head sadly, signifying the girl's death. Rin ran up to Sesshoumaru crying, wanting him to tell her that Hekele would be alright. The demon lord took Rin in his arms and stroked her back in order to calm her.  
  
"I will revive her Rin...don't worry..." he said in the most soothing voice ever heard from his own lips. This calmed Rin a bit and she held Sesshoumaru's kimono tighter, as if afraid he'd disappear as well.  
  
"She will be alright Rin, go back with Jakken and retrieve her pack, she will be awake when you return." he said truthfully. Rin nodded and let Jakken walk her back to where she had dropped Hekele's backpack.  
Sesshoumaru walked back over to where Hekele lay. A bit of remorse crossed over his face as he drew his Tenseiga. She had protected Rin with her life, literally, and both would have been safe if he had known of the demon's ruse. He had lost the demon's scent when but had distinctly heard the screams of pain. He and Jakken had come as fast as they could move, which for Sesshoumaru was very fast, considering he was a dog demon, and much faster than most demons were. He had been able to get there in mere moments, but was still too late. He felt responsible for the incident, even if he would never admit it. Even though he could easily bring her back, he felt a surge of pain at her demise, which he could not explain. He raised his sword over her body and the messenger demons that were to take her soul became visible to him alone. He swung the sword at the normally invisible demons and they vaporized.  
Sesshoumaru re-sheathed the Tenseiga, knelt over Hekele, and propped her up on his arm, much like he had done Rin when he had revived her. Slowly Hekele's injuries healed and her blood flowed back into her body. Her pale face regained its color and her heart jolted to life. She opened her eyes as she took her redeemed life's first breath. Hekele was pleasantly surprised to see Sesshoumaru holding her up, and even more so that she was even alive.  
  
"What...happened? I thought I was dying..." she said in a slightly awed voice. It was then that she saw a hint of a smile on Sesshoumaru's face, and not an evil smile either, but a content one. She gave him a confused look and sat up completely with his help. The pain from her injuries hadn't yet fully subsided, but she noticed that they had disappeared. The look on Sesshoumaru's face easily told of his amusement at her awe and confusion.  
  
"You did die, but I brought you back with the Tenseiga..." he said calmly. It was then that Hekele remembered Rin.  
  
"What about Rin? Is she ok? That demon..."  
  
"Rin is retrieving your pack, she is fine, your death upset her quite a bit but I assured her that you'd be awake when she and Jakken returned." Sesshoumaru interrupted her. Hekele nodded as she heard small, rapid steps heading their way. She smiled a bit as a joyous Rin came into view.  
  
"Thank you Sesshoumaru." she said sweetly as the young girl jumped into her arms. Sesshoumaru looked at her oddly for a moment before nodding. He hadn't expected a thank you, but smiled at the gesture's significance anyway. Too bad Hekele's face was buried in Rin's ruffled hair to see the historic sight of Sesshoumaru's the open smile.  
  
******************************************************************  
  
*Me* Well...you like? If so then please review, I only got one review on my last chapter, and that was from my loyal best friend, so please, if you have a heart, review. 


	6. Feelings and the Trip Home

Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Hello all you lovely ppls!!! I just wanted to say how much I love you!!!  
  
*Random reader* What the hell is up with her now???  
  
I am merely happy with all of the reviews I got...  
  
*Inuyasha* Yeah right, that bozo is just happy because all of her reviewers want her and Sesshoumaru to hook-up...  
  
*glares daggers at Inuyasha, then whispers sweetly in his ear* They also want me to get back to you and Kagome...and tell what happened when you all got blasted away into the forest...  
  
*Inuyasha* Feh!!! Like anything important would happen, who cares about that wench anyway?  
  
*whispers again* You do...  
  
*Inuyasha* Why you!!! *grabs his Tetsusaiga and chases Hekele in circles while yelling profanities*  
  
R&R If you want me to live!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I own squat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
***********************************************************  
  
Feelings and the Trip Home  
  
With Inuyasha and Kagome:  
  
Inuyasha groaned as he opened his eyes. He felt disoriented and as if he had just gotten his ass kicked. Then he remembered what happened.  
  
*Damn tiger demon...just when I let my guard down a little to help Kagome...* Then it hit him.  
  
"Kagome!" he yelled as he jumped up and looked around. His body was protesting, begging him to lie back down, but he couldn't. How could he forget her...?  
He searched around and, finally, his eyes fell upon her seemingly lifeless figure, about 20 feet from him. Shippo was curled up in a ball nearby as well. Inuyasha panicked and ran over to them, hoping they were alive. Their scents told him they were but he had to be sure...  
Shippo seemed all right, his injuries were limited to some minor cuts and scrapes. Inuyasha turned him over slightly to get a better look and noticed that he had landed on and broken his right arm. Inuyasha grimaced, the kitsune was going to be in a lot of pain when he woke up. Inuyasha even had to admit how much broken bones hurt...they weren't fun. Mindful of his arm, Inuyasha carefully lifted Shippo up and carried him over to Kagome.  
Kagome was another story when it came to injuries. She had a huge cut on her arm, which was bleeding, one or two more on her legs, (probably from stray branches,) her ankle was swollen, (Inuyasha couldn't tell if it was broken or not,) and she was covered in bruises. Inuyasha was relieved, however, to see her breathing with ease. He reached out his hand and stroked her cheek affectionately, just glad that she wasn't any worse off. He saw her backpack and dug through it, looking for her first-aid kit. Once he found it he proceeded to clean and wrap her wounds carefully. Once she was done he put some bandages on Shippo and cautiously wrapped his arm and put it in a sling so that he wouldn't accidentally move it. Inuyasha sat cross-legged and gently lifted Kagome into his lap and Shippo into hers. He nuzzled Kagome softly and laid his head on hers. When the two woke up he would take them to find Miroku and Sango, until then he was just going to stay here with them.  
  
**********************************************************  
  
With Sango and Miroku:  
  
Miroku carefully tended to Sango's wounds as she slept. He was careful not to move her too much; her ribs appeared to be broken. He smiled at how surprisingly peaceful she looked, despite the pain she would be in when she awoke. Her hair had fallen out of its ponytail and was framing her face beautifully. Miroku gently removed a strand from her face and tucked it behind her ear. Even when knocked out and scraped up she was stunning. Miroku sat back and reexamined his own wounds. He was probably just as bad as she was, minus the broken ribs. Sango was lucky to have landed on the soft ground; he had landed on a rock. He had woken up a few minutes after the fight, and was wondering why she hadn't.  
  
*Probably because she isn't used to getting hit in the head with a boomerang like I am...* he thought affectionately. He smiled at her again. It was then that he noticed Kirara; she was sleeping next to her mistress protectively. He smiled and, having forgotten all about the little cat, stroked her gently. Kirara woke up and meowed at him.  
  
"Oh, sorry Kirara, I didn't mean to wake you." Miroku apologized. Kirara seemed to be satisfied with the apology and turned into her larger form. She looked at Miroku as he lifted Sango partially off the ground so Kirara could lay behind her. He laid Sango back down in a sitting position, using Kirara as support, so as not to harm her ribs further. Miroku sat leaning on the cat demon and she meowed, (although it sounded more like a growl since she was in her larger form,) affectionately at her two friends. She wrapped her giant, fluffy tail around the two for warmth. Miroku yawned slightly, having been very tired throughout the night's events.  
  
"Arigato Kirara..." he said as he fell asleep. The large Kirara meowed and closed her eyes. Like Inuyasha, however, she was far from sleeping.  
  
************************************************************  
  
With Inuyasha and Kagome:  
  
Kagome slowly woke up from her unconscious state and looked around. Feeling the warmth behind her she looked up Inuyasha and blushed slightly. As if on cue Inuyasha opened his eyes to look at her, a smile forcing itself to be seen.  
  
"I see your finally up...how are you feeling?" he asked her. Kagome smiled a bit.  
  
"I feel like I just got run over and flattened by Koga, how about you?" she responded. Inuyasha smiled more openly at this, fond memories playing in the back of his mind.  
  
"Why are you smiling like that?" Kagome asked, knowing Inuyasha hated to hint at his emotions. His face broke into a huge grin and Kagome rolled her eyes, knowing what was inhabiting his mind at the moment.  
  
"When you said that it reminded me of when Koga fell into that damn 'sit' created crater," he said, still smiling. Kagome grinned herself at another memory and Inuyasha just looked at her oddly.  
  
"And you? What are you so happy about?" he pressed. Kagome smiled at him sweetly.  
  
"Just your huge case of the hic-ups...and how hilarious it was trying to help you get rid of them..." she said. Inuyasha growled a bit.  
  
"Yeah right...real hilarious..." he said sarcastically.  
  
"Well, you thought it was funny how I helped you get rid of them by saying the 's' word..." she retorted, laughing. Inuyasha chuckled at first, but then remembered why he had been 'sat'. That stupid 'Hobo' guy had come over and he had been caught spying. He remembered how he had kissed Kagome, and Inuyasha still wanted to rip him apart. Inuyasha subconsciously clutched Kagome tighter, mentally refusing to ever let another guy get her; she was HIS, even if he hadn't told her yet...  
Kagome felt Inuyasha tighten his hold over her and smiled. She felt very content in his embrace, it felt almost...loving. She looked at the little ball of fluff in her lap as it began to stir in its sleep. Smiling, she stroked Shippo's hair lovingly as he opened his eyes and looked up at her.  
Seeing Kagome awake made Shippo happy, seeing Inuyasha hugging Kagome and actually looking concerned for him as well made him even happier. From Shippo's point of view they were both looking at him much like his parent's would when they tucked him in for bed at night. To him they were his parents now, ever since they had saved him from the Thunder Brothers Hiten and Manten. He smiled and jumped up, expecting to land on Kagome's shoulder so that he could hug her, instead found himself suspended by his tail looking at a frowning hanyou.  
  
"What's the big deal Inuyasha?!? What'd I do?!?!?!?" he wailed, wanting to hug his 'mother'. Inuyasha set the kit back down on Kagome's lap and looked at him fondly.  
  
"Feh, look out for your arm kit." he said, pointing to Shippo's wrapped arm. Shippo tried moving it and wailed out in pain, causing Inuyasha to flatten his ears. Kagome smiled and stroked Shippo's hair in order to calm him down a bit while Inuyasha regain the rest of his hearing abilities. Inuyasha had half been expecting this to happen, so he refrained from hitting the kitsune or chucking him into a tree. Kagome inspected Shippo's arm for herself.  
  
"Wow Inuyasha, you did a good job wrapping this..." she complimented. Inuyasha couldn't help but beam with pride when she said this; he had seen her wrap everyone's wounds so many times that the exact procedure for each wound was eked into his brain. Shippo carefully jumped and landed squarely on Inuyasha's shoulder, careful of his own arm this time. Shippo then gave the surprised hanyou a huge hug.  
  
"Thank you for being nice for once Inuyasha..." Shippo said sincerely, half wanting to know what Inuyasha would do about that last remark. Inuyasha gave a slight growl but kept it as much of a 'nice' growl as he could manage.  
  
"No sweat kit., now get off so we can find Sango and Miroku." he said. Shippo obeyed but when Kagome tried to stand up Inuyasha gently held her down.  
  
"Inuyasha?" she asked, confused. Inuyasha pointed to her ankle.  
  
"Your ankle is swollen and I couldn't tell if it was broken or not, and since you haven't used it..." he trailed off, but Kagome got the picture. Her who body ached, but she had been injured many times in the past, and wouldn't be able to feel the severe pain of a break until she tried to use the ankle. She had been resting so she couldn't tell its numbed pain from that of the rest of her body. She blushed as Inuyasha picked her up bridal- style.  
  
"You want to try and walk on it? I can carry you..." he offered, not wanting to hurt her more if it was indeed broken. Kagome shook her head and motioned for him to put her down. Inuyasha hesitated but did as he was told. He kept a firm hold on her waist as she put weight on the ankle in question, just in case. Kagome whimpered in pain when she put her full weight on her ankle and Inuyasha had her back in his arms in a heartbeat. Shippo jumped onto Inuyasha's shoulder and began to panic.  
  
"Kagome! Is it bad? Are you going to be ok? Is it broken? Are we going to have to do that amputate-thingy?" he asked a mile a minute. Kagome looked at the worried kitsune and laughed. Inuyasha smiled at this, he remembered a time when almost anything would put Kagome out of commission, but she was much stronger now...  
  
"I'm alright Shippo. I think it is just a bad sprain, and no, we don't have to amputate it. Have you been trying to read my books from Health class again?" she said while stroking the kitsune's hair. Shippo calmed down and popped into her lap as Inuyasha carried them in the direction of Sango and Miroku's scents.  
  
******************************************************  
  
With Sango and Miroku:  
  
Sango woke up feeling warm. She slowly opened her eyes and gasped in pain as she breathed. Oh how it hurt! Miroku felt her stirring next to him and woke up as well. She noticed him there and looked at him with pained eyes. Miroku wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her and make her injuries go away, but doing so when she had broken ribs probably wasn't the best idea. Instead he contented himself with grasping her hand for dear life and stroking it lovingly with his thumb.  
  
"You have a few broken ribs...we will go back to Lady Kaede's village and ask her to heal you once we find Inuyasha and the others..." he said soothingly. Sango nodded painfully in response. Miroku tightened his grip on her hand and tried to remain calm. He knew that Inuyasha and the others would come for them if they were alive, but a small part of him nagged, what if they weren't? He scooted closer to Sango, and laid her head on his shoulder, for once not thinking any perverted thoughts. Sango seemed to sense this and allowed him to do so, while feeling the relief that he was truly there when she needed him. Despite his perverted ness, he was a good man. She relaxed into his gentle, yet, protective embrace as he stroked her shoulder. She could hear Kirara purring contently and felt her eyes getting heavy as the pain numbed a bit. Miroku noticed this and whispered gently to her.  
  
"It's alright, you can go back to sleep, I won't let anything happen to you..." Sango nodded and closed her eyes, knowing he was being serious. The last thing she felt before sleep consumed her were Miroku's lips touching her forehead. She smiled in her sleep.  
  
**********************************************************  
  
With Hekele and Sesshoumaru:  
  
Hekele laid out her sleeping bag and unzipped it all the way, creating one large mattress. She shook her head in disbelief that she had decided to sleep in a tree and uncovered on the ground instead of in her nice warm bag. Oh well, it was going to get used tonight, her back couldn't take another night sitting upright. Rin was still bouncing around, glad that Sesshoumaru had brought Hekele back, and Jakken was trying to tend to her cuts, without much success. Hekele motioned for Rin to come over to the unfolded sleeping bag and she obeyed. Jakken scoffed and followed. Hekele held Rin in her lap as Jakken, who was mumbling about never getting any respect, tended to her cuts. Hekele smiled at the toad demon and shook her head. Sesshoumaru appeared into the small camp with some wood for fire. Hekele got up and took the stack from him.  
  
"You know, I would have done that if I had known that that is what you were up to..." she said as she arranged the wood into a circle and lit it with some flint. Sesshoumaru gave her a passive look.  
  
"I thought you weren't going to treat me any different because I was a demon or a lord?" he asked in an almost amused tone. Hekele studied him for a moment.  
  
"I'm not, who ever said I couldn't be nice for the hell of it?" she replied dryly. Sesshoumaru cocked an eyebrow but kept quiet...for a moment.  
  
"Why be kind if you get nothing out of it?" he asked in an annoyed tone. Hekele pondered what he said as she walked over to her backpack and pulled out an oversized navy blue sweatshirt out for Rin.  
  
"Not all of us want something out of life Sesshoumaru, some of us just want to live through it. We are kind because we can and want to be, not because we see an advantage in being so..." she replied in careful words, pulling the sweatshirt over Rin's head and watching her run off again. Sesshoumaru thought for a moment.  
  
"Why survive life when you can control it? It is much more practical if you think about it..."  
  
"No it isn't, by controlling people and their lives you inhibit them, enslave them, and completely wipe them of their own self. You wouldn't want Rin to feel trapped or enslaved would you? She would become an empty shell without love or emotion, I know you care about her more than that..." she said quietly as she saw Rin jump onto Jakken, trying to make him 'pretty' again.  
  
"But do I not control her already?" Sesshoumaru said testily, as if Hekele were threatening Rin. Hekele smiled, closed her eyes, and shook her head.  
  
"No...you care for her and keep her safe. You order her around a bit but you do so cautiously," she said as she gave him a side glance, "as if you were worried about breaking her..."  
  
"She IS only a child..."  
  
"No, that isn't it, you don't want her to be too burdened, so you make Jakken do everything." Hekele said teasingly. Sesshoumaru winced a bit, but it was hardly noticeable. Hekele continued.  
  
"She doesn't feel controlled, she is more than happy to help, it is in her nature, but somewhere down the line the whole order after order and snarl after snarl deal begins to wear at a person's self. If you treat them badly enough eventually they will break, you wouldn't do that to Rin...you would sense a change in her immediately and try to make her happy again. I envy her in this assurance." Sesshoumaru looked at Hekele oddly, one minute he could have sworn she was accusing him of being a slave driver and the next minute she was commenting him on caring for Rin. Her words were laced with sorrow, but he couldn't understand why.  
  
"How is it you know how such a person would feel?" he questioned. Hekele smiled weakly.  
  
"Just because someone has been broken doesn't mean that they can't be put back together..." she said. Sesshoumaru understood what she was saying and cast her a wary glance. She was confusing him more and more by the day.  
  
*************************************************************  
  
With Inuyasha and Kagome:  
  
"Are they close?" Shippo asked for the millionth time. Inuyasha had half a mind to hit the kitsune but he didn't want to drop Kagome. Instead he just glared at Shippo.  
  
"Will you ever be quiet?!?" he yelled. Kagome cringed and looked at him out of the corner of her eye.  
  
"I would s-i-t you but then I'd be in even more pain, you didn't have to yell in my ear." she said begrudgingly. Inuyasha gave her a look.  
  
"Your stupid kit. won't shut up though!!!" he exclaimed. Kagome cringed again and glared at him. Inuyasha gulped, knowing that the very second he put her down he was going to be 'sat'. Shippo grinned at the trouble he was causing and snuggled into Kagome's arms a little bit, happy that the two were back to normal and that Kagome was ok. He fell asleep moments later. Inuyasha had to suppress a growl. He hated when the kitsune did that, he knew that Inuyasha got jealous whenever he hugged or stayed near Kagome...so he continued to do so on a regular basis. Inuyasha couldn't understand why Kagome put up with his antics, especially when she knew he was up to no good. He blushed a bit when he felt Kagome snuggle a bit closer to him, and smiled when he realized that she had fallen asleep. He held her a bit tighter as he made his way to a clearing where Sango and Miroku's scents appeared to be coming from. When he stepped into the clearing he was met with a surprising sight. Sango was well within Miroku's groping range, he was holding her in fact, and she was sleeping soundly. Inuyasha sighed to himself and looked at Kagome.  
  
*Why can't we be like that???* he thought, then he remembered all the times that he had teased her and his face faltered. How could they be like that when all he did was berate her for no reason what so ever? He walked over to his two companions and gently set Kagome and Shippo down next to them. He then tapped Miroku on the head, waking him up. Miroku stared at him for a moment before completely realizing who was standing in front of him.  
  
"Inuyasha? You are all right, good! Where are Shippo and Lady Kagome?" he asked, concerned. Inuyasha smiled and motioned to the two lying on the other side of Sango. Miroku sighed and nodded. He then looked at Sango and smiled happily. Inuyasha raised an eyebrow.  
  
"For once, it truly isn't what you think. Sango has a few broken ribs, and that's why we didn't come to find you. She can barely move, so we stayed here and hoped that you'd be ok and come find us..." Miroku explained, still smiling at the sleeping girl next to him. Inuyasha could smell the sincerity floating off of Miroku, so he didn't press the matter, but sat down in front of the monk and stared at him oddly. Miroku returned the stare.  
  
"What? What did I do? I'm telling the truth this time!" Inuyasha rolled his eyes at the monk.  
  
"Not that this is a bad thing, but why haven't you groped her? She is here, defenseless, injured, and you had the perfect alibi to see her half naked, so why haven't you groped her? Usually you would pray for an opportunity like this!" Inuyasha said accusingly. Miroku actually turned a deep shade of red at this, knowing that his friend was right.  
  
"Well, seeing as how she has a few broken ribs, I don't think giving her a reason to try to kill me was in either of our best interests." he said. Inuyasha nodded, satisfied that his friend had had some self control when needed. Miroku's eyes got an odd twinkle in them when he looked over at Kagome and Inuyasha narrowed his eyes dangerously.  
  
"Don't even think about it bozo, if you touch my Kagome I'll kick your ass from here to China." Miroku pretended to look offended, but then smiled again, in yet another devious way, but this time it wasn't a perverted devious.  
  
"What are you so happy about lech?" Inuyasha asked, confused. Miroku's grin only widened.  
  
"Inuyasha, you called her YOUR Kagome." At this Inuyasha froze.  
  
"No I didn't..."  
  
"Oh yes you did, you said, 'don't even think about it bozo, if you touch MY Kagome I'll kick your ass from here to China.'" Miroku quoted. Inuyasha turned as red as his haori as he realized what Miroku said was true. Miroku chuckled a bit, causing Kagome and Sango to stir. Both he and Inuyasha froze as Kagome blinked open her eyes and sat up. She stretched and looked at the two, then her eyes fell on Sango, who was slowly waking up as well. Shippo remained in dreamland.  
Sango opened her eyes and felt very warm, again. Her pain returned full force as she woke up completely. She gasped for air and shut her eyes tight to try and fight the pain. Miroku suddenly looked helpless to help her, wanting to do something but not knowing what. He continued to hold her, as gently as he could and she buried her face into his robes. He looked at Inuyasha and Kagome for support and Kagome had quickly scooted over to his side.  
  
"Inuyasha, could you please get me my back pack? I need to wrap her ribs. Miroku, could you go get some water for the bandages, so they stick? Please?" she asked and the two boys were up in a heartbeat, Miroku gently prying Sango off first. He ran to a nearby river and gathered water in one of Kagome's bowls almost as quickly as Inuyasha got the bandages from Kagome's pack. They were then shooed away and a sleeping Shippo was dragged with them. After Sango was bandaged Kagome gave her some sleeping pills to numb the pain and help her rest. Suddenly she remembered something very important and glanced at the now returning boys in shock.  
  
"What is it Kagome?" Inuyasha asked, getting worried at her frightened expression. Kagome gulped and tried to calm herself down.  
  
"We forgot about Hekele..." she said softly, mentally kicking her own ass for forgetting about her friend. Inuyasha and Miroku froze and stared at each other before running over to Kagome. Miroku got onto Kirara and motioned to Inuyasha who lifted Sango as gently as he could and placed her into Miroku's lap. Inuyasha and the newly awakened Shippo walked over to Kagome. Shippo pounced onto her shoulder as Inuyasha lifted her up and the group began to run. Inuyasha picked up Hekele's scent within minutes and headed in her direction. He also smelled Sesshoumaru, Jakken, and Rin. He couldn't decide whether to be worried or relieved but ran faster either way.  
  
********************************************************  
  
With Hekele and Sesshoumaru:  
  
Hekele and Rin were snuggled up on Hekele's 'mattress' and were curled under a blanket that Hekele had brought along. Rin was sleeping soundly but Hekele couldn't sleep at all. She stared up at the sky and was deep in thought of nothing in particular. Jakken was sleeping on the other side of the fire and Sesshoumaru was sitting near the girls, just in case something happened. Sesshoumaru could tell from Hekele's uneven breathing that she was awake. After about an hour of this he got irritated and spoke up.  
  
"Wench, you CAN sleep you know." he growled. Hekele turned to look at him.  
  
"Don't call me that, and I CAN'T sleep. I haven't slept well in months, why should now be any different?" she retorted. Sesshoumaru thought for a moment and decided to use her insomnia to get some questions of his answered.  
  
"How do you know Inuyasha?" he asked suddenly. Hekele looked at him for a moment, but decided that she wasn't going to die if she revealed her past to him.  
  
"Well, Kagome and I have been friends for a while, so when I needed a place to stay, she, her mom, brother, and grandfather took me in. I met Inuyasha a day or so later when he came to get her..." she replied. Sesshoumaru nodded, but continued his prying.  
  
"Why did you need some place to stay?" he continued. Hekele rolled her eyes, not wanting to get into it really, but not seeing a way out of it. She got up and walked over to where Sesshoumaru sat and placed herself next to him, not wanting to disturb Rin.  
  
"Well, I had some...family issues and couldn't stay home any more." Hekele said, trying to dance around the subject. Sesshoumaru wasn't fooled.  
  
"I can smell your secrecy, just tell me already wench." he said passively. Hekele sighed and gave up.  
  
"For a while my dad had been abusing me, hitting me and stuff. He and my mom had gotten a divorce a few years ago and I decided to live with her when I was finally allowed the choice, I would still see him on weekends though. I guess it got him angrier because one day he finally snapped and tried cutting me. No body believed me though, they trusted him when he said I cut myself to get attention. One day when I was at my mom's house and we were sleeping he broke in and attacked us. He killed my mom, her boyfriend, and my little brother. He tried to kill me but the neighbors heard what was happening and came to our rescue. He ran but threatened to come back for me. I nearly died..." she said sadly, remembering it all as if it had just happened. She was looking at the ground as though it were the most fascinating thing on earth.  
Sesshoumaru's face was no longer plastered passive. He was deep in thought and it showed. He was wondering how anyone could do such a thing as too murder his own family. Sesshoumaru cast a glance at Rin. She was like a daughter to him, though he would never admit it. He would never dream of hurting her. His glance fell on Hekele again, who kept her eyes trained to the ground, as if in shame. He had the strong urge to comfort her, although he had no clue why. He didn't quite understand what a 'divorce' was either, but assumed that it meant that her parents were no longer mates, since she had a boyfriend and that Hekele had to choose who to live with.  
  
"Hey, can I ask you something Sesshoumaru?" Hekele asked suddenly, looking Sesshoumaru in the eye. Sesshoumaru nodded, wondering what she would ask.  
  
"Is it really because of the two swords that you hate Inuyasha?" she questioned. Sesshoumaru was taken aback by it, but replied easily.  
  
"That and the fact that he is a hanyou." Hekele shook her head and muttered something that to Sesshoumaru sounded like, 'That's stupid.' Sesshoumaru glared at her.  
  
"And how exactly is that stupid?" he asked menacingly.  
  
"First of all, you hate him for something he has no control over. He didn't choose to be a hanyou, he was born one. It isn't his fault. If you want to hate someone for this fact then hate you father and his mother, but even that would be stupid. When you love someone there is no right or wrong, and YOU know first hand that not all humans are pathetic and disgusting." Hekele said, motioning to Rin. Sesshoumaru growled, but Hekele knew that he as listening and turned her body so that she was facing him directly.  
  
"Second of all, why do you want the Tetsusaiga so much when you have the Tenseiga? Don't you realize how precious YOUR weapon is?" she asked. Sesshoumaru stared at her in wonder. The Tetsusaiga was much more valuable, wasn't it?  
  
"What do you mean, 'precious'? This sword couldn't cut butter." Hekele shook her head.  
  
"You are blind. You have been given a much more precious blade than the Tetsusaiga."  
  
"The Tetsusaiga can kill 100 demons with one swing if used properly!" he almost shouted at her apparent idiocy. Hekele smiled and continued.  
  
"But the Tenseiga can HEAL 100 demons, OR humans if used properly. In all of time, never has such a thing been even dreamt of. Even in my time, we keep making stronger and stronger weapons, even though it creates more and more problems. We have weapons that can kill tens of thousands of people at once, AND level whole cities at the same time. But we can't even begin to create anything that can heal so much as one person the way your sword does. We can't bring someone back to life, but you can, and here you think its power is less than that of Inuyasha's sword? When my family was being killed off one by one, even before my father murdered my mom, I would have given anything, my own life, for your blade. I would have done anything to get my loved ones back, I can't believe that this gift of yours has fallen on such a person who can't appreciate true greatness and beauty as your sword!" she yelled, almost waking Rin and Jakken. Sesshoumaru pondered what Hekele was saying. He had an apparently limitless gift and he didn't care? Of course he cared! He had used it to bring back her and Rin. 'We have weapons that can kill tens of thousands of people at once, AND level whole cities at the same time. But we can't even begin to create anything that can heal so much as one person the way your sword does.' He thought about what Hekele had said again. In her time, when everything was so much different, and more advanced than in this time, they still couldn't resurrect people? His sword was one of a kind, he knew, but over the course of 500 hundred years and still not be able to heal? Hekele was still looking at him intently, waiting for his reply. He knew this but knew not what to say. He turned his head to regard her but was caught in her gaze. He couldn't place what was there, but he did see a bit of confusion and anger in her blue depths.  
  
"If you had such a sword as Inuyasha's, you would give it up for one such as mine?" he asked, "You would give up the chance to get even with the killer as long as your loved ones were intact? Would you not worry about being safe? Would you not want insurance that it wouldn't happen again?" he finished, testing her resolve. She wasted no time in answering.  
  
"Yes, I would give up his sword for yours if I had the choice. I wouldn't worry about safety, it is different in my era than it is here, and I would be more than safe now that we know he is a danger. If it did come down to needing insurance that it wouldn't happen again I would personally slit his throat." Hekele said darkly. Sesshoumaru was taken aback for the second time that night, this time by her tone. He had never heard her speak that darkly, even when arguing with him. One look at her face and he knew she meant it. That tone and promise didn't suit her. Sesshoumaru could tell that she wouldn't want to kill a family member, and so to promise to do so as suddenly and thoughtlessly as she did didn't seem to fit her at all. He subconsciously didn't like her making such a statement.  
  
"You would end it yourself?" he asked as if to confirm her promise. Hekele only nodded. Sesshoumaru looked into her eyes for a moment longer before averting his gaze.  
  
"Such words do not suit you, killing seems not to be your choice pastime," he stated superiorly, sneaking a look at Hekele as he did so. She was staring at the ground again.  
  
"Had I been desperate enough while fighting Kohaku I would have killed him."  
  
"But you knew that you didn't need to, and so he lives. Killing a family member is even farther down your list of things to do, I assume."  
  
"You are right, but if need be, then so be it." Hekele said sadly. Sesshoumaru could smell the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes. He didn't wish to see them as well.  
  
"Go and sleep, if my pathetic brother and his friends are alive I doubt they would wish to have to drag you home due to sleep deprivation," he said. Hekele nodded solemnly and walked back to where Rin was sleeping on her 'mattress' without so much as a sigh in protest. Sesshoumaru felt a bit bad when he saw her retreating form. He had obviously tested her feelings a bit too much, for she never gave up and simply obeyed his simple 'requests'. She always fought back, but she hadn't this time. He had the urge to do something about her newly discovered depression. Her scent was laced with it. He had smelled it the entire time the two were speaking, and yet he just had to press her further. He resolved to make it up to her somehow. Sesshoumaru paused in his thoughts when he realized what he had just volunteered to do. Why should he care if she was happy or not? But, unfortunately for him, he owed her one anyway, for saving Rin.  
  
(OOC: Yeah, like that's the only reason...oh, and f.y.i., when he resurrected her it was because she had died for Rin, he still owed her one from before.)  
  
Sesshoumaru noticed that Hekele had fallen asleep, her breathing was dead even. He sniffed the air and noticed that the scent of tears was still apparent. Perplexed, he stood and walked over to the girl as silently as he could. Upon her face was a single tear that had been shed. Sesshoumaru gingerly wiped it from her cheek and stared at her sleeping figure. Something about her appealed to him greatly. She stood up to him when no one else would, and she could make him see his own blindness in matters such as his Tenseiga. Yes, something about her was special. Sesshoumaru walked back over to his tree and sat there, standing guard, until daylight hit the horizon.  
  
************************************************************  
  
With the Inuyasha Gumi:  
  
"Inuyasha, how far do you think they are?" Shippo asked for the third time in the past fifteen minutes. Inuyasha gritted his teeth as he ran, not wanting to give Kagome a reason to 'sit' him.  
  
"Shippo, the sun will be coming up soon, why don't you try to get some sleep while you can..." Kagome said tiredly, even she was getting sick of Shippo's antics. Inuyasha said a silent thank you as Shippo obeyed and curled up into a ball on her lap. Inuyasha stopped and waited for Sango, Miroku, and Kirara. It was taking forever to get to Hekele and Sesshoumaru. Sango was so badly hurt that she couldn't move, and Miroku would be at a disadvantage if something were to attack them. Inuyasha would always get too far ahead and have to stop and wait. He was sure that Hekele was in one piece. Sesshoumaru wouldn't kill her as long as Rin was attached to her, and Rin was practically stuck to her hip. He still had a feeling that something had happened though, and not a good something either.  
  
"Inuyasha, do you think that Kaede will be able to heal Sango?" Kagome whispered, not wanting to wake the now sleeping kitsune. Inuyasha nodded calmly.  
  
"The hag hasn't let us down before...I think Sango will be fine." he said quietly. Kagome nodded as Kirara came into view.  
  
"I hope so..." she replied.  
Miroku had a death grip on Sango. He was holding her as still as he could and would always wince whenever he heard her gasp in her sleep. Sango meant too much to him for him not to. It annoyed him how Inuyasha would speed up all the time but was relieved as he once again came into view, signifying that he was never far ahead. Miroku looked down at Sango, her face was contorted in pain as she slept. He held her a bit tighter, but remained mindful of her ribs. He wished there was more he could do, he felt so helpless when things like this happened. He gently brushed some strands of hair from her face and sighed sadly. He looked up as he saw the first rays of sunlight peer over the treetops. He vaguely wondered in the back of his head how Hekele was fairing with Sesshoumaru, when he heard Inuyasha growl.  
  
"What is it Inuyasha?" he said seriously, knowing that they would be at a disadvantage if a demon were to attack them.  
  
"I smell blood...Hekele's blood." he said angrily. Miroku's eyes widened. Inuyasha continued to sniff the air in the direction Miroku could only assume was where he had smelled the blood. He looked at Kagome, her face was one of horror.  
  
"Y-y-you m-m-mean she's......" Kagome started to get tears in her eyes as she thought the worse.  
  
"It doesn't smell fresh though, and it's REALLY faint, but I DO smell it, it may have happened last night..." Inuyasha said hurriedly, as if trying to calm her fears a bit.  
  
"Her scent is living though...right?" Miroku asked, referring to the scent Inuyasha had been following before. Inuyasha nodded, Miroku sighed in relief, as did Kagome, except hers was much more apparent. Inuyasha didn't notice though.  
  
*Why is the scent of her blood so faint? You'd think that I'd smell it WAY before I smelled her regular scent. At least she's alive though, I don't know what Kagome would do if she wasn't...* he thought, casting a small glance at Kagome, who had calmed down quite a bit to his relief. He didn't like having her upset, not at all. He looked at the rising sun and wondered what had happened to their friend.  
  
*********************************************************  
  
With Hekele and Sesshoumaru:  
  
Hekele woke up groggily on her makeshift mattress and sat up to survey the scene. Jakken was up and tending to the fire, Rin was walking around picking flowers, (which Hekele smiled at, despite her need for more sleep,) and Sesshoumaru was...not there.  
  
*Where's Sesshoumaru?* she thought as she stood up and stretched. Jakken noticed her awake and decided to answer her unasked question.  
  
"M'lord Sesshoumaru is getting some fish for breakfast." he said. Hekele froze and looked at the little toad demon oddly.  
  
"He is? I didn't think that was his department." Jakken glared at her.  
  
"M'lord says that if I tried to catch a fish it'd probably eat me." At this Hekele laughed, knowing that he was probably right. Jakken glared at her some more.  
  
"I wouldn't be laughing if MY hair looked that badly groomed..." he muttered, referring to Hekele's 'bed head'. Hekele just smirked, always one step ahead of the little toad's insults.  
  
"At least I HAVE hair you jerk of an amphibian!" she retorted victoriously. Hekele made her way to her backpack, dragging her feet the entire way. Her mind may be awake but her body had hit the snooze button. She began rummaging through it when Rin popped up with the bouquet of flowers in her hand. Her face was bright as the sun and she was smiling from ear to ear. Hekele looked like a shipwreck.  
  
"Morning Hekele-chan!!!" she said as she handed the flowers to Hekele.  
  
"Mornin' Rin-chan, did you sleep well?" Hekele half-muttered half- cheerfully said to the little girl as she continued looking through her pack.  
  
*Now...to find some instant coffee for me, and some chocolate for the cute sweet munchkin...* she thought as she found the objects she was looking for. She handed Rin a small piece of chocolate as she grabbed a kettle.  
  
"Jakken, I'm going to the river to get some water, can you watch Rin for 2 minutes?" she asked, knowing how much he hated watching the girl. Jakken sighed and nodded, happy that it was only for a couple of minutes. Hekele patted Rin on the head and walked towards the river.  
When she got there, she was a little surprised that she didn't see Sesshoumaru, but shrugged it off, knowing that he was there somewhere. She quickly filled her kettle with the water and left, she could hear Jakken complaining about not wanting to look 'pretty' and Rin's happy squeals. Upon returning she set the kettle on the fire and waited for it to warm up. She looked up as she heard Sesshoumaru's footsteps coming into the clearing. He had about nine or ten fish with him. Hekele quirked an eyebrow and he nodded to the forest behind her.  
  
"Your companions are coming, I could smell them a few miles off." he muttered. Hekele smiled, apparently her friends were alive and well, but what she saw coming through the trees made her panic. Inuyasha was carrying Kagome and Sango was being held by Miroku in order to keep her from falling off of Kirara. Shippo was curled up on Kagome's stomach. She rushed to her friends to see if they were all right.  
  
"Are you guys ok?!? What happened?" she said as Inuyasha set Kagome down and supported her on her good ankle. Hekele held her friend steady as Inuyasha took a partially awake Sango from Miroku as he slid off of Kirara. Hekele was panicking.  
  
"It's ok, we're all alright, but Sango has a few broken ribs, I have a sprained ankle, and Shippo has a broken arm, but that has already started to heal." Kagome said in reassurance. Hekele calmed down and took a deep breath as she helped Kagome sit down by the fire. Shippo bounced up and down when he saw Rin, who smiled and ran over to hug them all.  
Once everyone was seated by the fire, Hekele poured some of the hot water into a few cups. She then added some instant coffee to each, stirred it thoroughly, and handed them out to Kagome, Sango, Miroku, Inuyasha, and Sesshoumaru. She took one cup for herself and drank it slowly before speaking to everyone's confused faces; Kagome was already sipping hers happily.  
  
"It's coffee, it has caffeine in it and it will wake everyone up a bit. Even those of us who slept last night look like the living dead, careful though, it's really hot." As if on cue, Miroku yelped as he attempted to drink his too fast.  
  
"Can't say I didn't warn him..." Hekele said passively as she sipped her coffee groggily. Sesshoumaru had to hide a smirk, any fool could tell that she wasn't a morning person just by looking at her, but the attitude she held now that she was calm was just another hint to stay away. He tried the drink without protest and found it to be quite good, very hot, but quite good. Hekele was the first to speak as the fish were being cooked.  
  
"So...how was everyone else's night?" she asked, half mumbling and half smirking, knowing that everyone's had been a living Hell. Sango glared at her.  
  
"I have one word for you...ouch..." she said. Hekele smiled at her friend kindly.  
  
"Sorry, Sango, I was just joking...I'm sure everyone had a rough night..." she replied, remembering the pain she had felt as she was being killed. Her face turned pale and Sango was about to ask her about it when Kagome spoke.  
  
"Umm...Inuyasha?"  
  
"Yeah?" he said arrogantly.  
  
"Would it be alright if Hekele and I went home for a day or so to restock and heal a bit? We could bring back some medicine to help Sango out, in case Kaede can't heal her..." At this Sango gave Kagome a grateful look and instantly all the support in the impending argument that she could offer. Hekele did as well. Inuyasha scoffed, but took one look at Sango's bandages and Kagome's ankle and relented.  
  
"Feh," he said gently, letting the girls know that they had won without even putting up a fight. This shocked them, greatly.  
  
"Umm, are you sure you didn't bump your head Inuyasha? That sounded like a 'yes' instead of your standard 'no'." Miroku said, eyeing the hanyou worriedly. A death glare was his answer. *Never mind...he's fine...*  
  
Kagome gave Inuyasha a huge hug and thanked the now overly embarrassed hanyou as Sesshoumaru smirked and muttered something about weak humans. Hekele thanked him as well and grabbed one of the now fully cooked fish and began eating. Everyone, even Sesshoumaru and Jakken, stared at her oddly.  
  
"What?!?! I'm hungry!!!" she explained. Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow and shook his head, a smile threatening to play at his lips.  
  
"Isn't it hot though? You just picked it up from the fire and began eating, aren't you afraid of burning yourself...or your taste buds???" Kagome and Sango asked. Hekele grinned in realization.  
  
"This is why, back home, I was called the, 'Fire-proof Bitch', although I have burned myself while working with fire multiple times...but sizzling and boiling food, I can handle..." she replied triumphantly. At this Kagome burst out laughing, followed by Miroku, Shippo, Inuyasha, Rin, and a cautious Sango. Jakken rolled his eyes while Sesshoumaru allowed himself to smile contently. Which caught Inuyasha's eye quickly and he smirked inwardly. Miroku saw it as well and gave Inuyasha a look, which earned him a grin. The two kept quiet though, despite their desperate need to say something.  
After breakfast and a long rest the large group began the trek to Kaede's village. It took about nine hours to get there because of Sango's ribs, but no one minded the slow pace...except for Inuyasha.  
  
"Will you people hurry up?!? I am going to be old and gray before we get there at this pace!!!" he yelled from about thirty yards in front of the group, Kagome securely held onto his back. Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes in annoyance and glanced at Rin, who was also scamming a ride on someone's back; Hekele's.  
  
"I don't know what you're complaining about Inuyasha, Sango is the one in pain...plus you won't get gray hair, it's already WHITE!!!" Hekele retorted darkly, which oddly enough caused Rin to laugh. Inuyasha scowled and waited up for the group. The journey went much like this until they finally reached the village, only to find accommodations ready; Kaede had heard them coming over a mile away.  
Sesshoumaru took the time to look around the village quickly as they walked, he had not the slightest clue as to why he had bothered to come, but he, Rin, and Jakken had anyway. The old miko Kaede walked up to the group with a warm smile, followed by the most worried expression when she saw Sango's bandages and Kagome's ankle. She saw Sesshoumaru, Jakken, and the little girl that could only be Rin with the group. She also saw an unusually dressed girl, but smiled again for her.  
  
"Ye must be Hekele, Kagome has said many good things about ye..." she said as she bowed to Hekele, who blushed and returned the bow respectfully with a smile.  
  
"And I assume that you are Kaede-sama, a pleasure to meet you," she said truthfully. Kaede smiled again and motioned for everyone to come inside. She led Miroku to a cot where he placed Sango as carefully as he could. She smiled up at him, having been awake the whole time and muttered a 'thank you'. Miroku smiled at her contently and nodded. He placed himself next to her cot as the rest of the figures piled into the hut.  
  
"So, what happened to ye this time to cause such injuries?" Kaede asked the group as she mixed together some herbs to help ease Sango's pain.  
  
"A demon attacked, the usual." Inuyasha said passively, Hekele wanted to smirk but held it in.  
  
*How often has he said that to her?* she wondered as Kaede eyed Sesshoumaru suspiciously.  
  
"Oh?" she said, "Was this the same demon who kidnapped Shippo?" Hekele was really fighting the urge to laugh now. Sesshoumaru, the kidnapper, was sitting next to her fighting the urge to growl at the old woman who was looking at him her accusing eyes. He stole a glance at Hekele and noted that she looked like she wanted to laugh, but she was fighting it well, even for his trained eyes.  
  
"No, Lady Kaede, it was not the demon who kidnapped Shippo, it was a tiger demon, the one who kidnapped Shippo was a DOG demon..." Miroku said cockily, being the furthest away from Sesshoumaru's death-promising glare. Even Sango looked at the monk as though he were some sort of odd animal and back away a few feet, (well, only a few inches for poor Sango,) leaving Sesshoumaru staring at him dangerously. Jakken was hiding behind Hekele. Shippo, using some of Kagome's cards, was teaching Rin how to play Go-Fish, but even they got the message to move. Sesshoumaru noticed this but paid it no mind as he glared at the monk.  
  
"Oh come on Sesshoumaru, you DID kidnap Shippo, BUT you also were the one who destroyed the tiger demon, so it evens out and you've got a clean slate, it isn't like he was insulting you...though some may get that impression..." Hekele said, giving the monk a glare and a chance at life. Sesshoumaru growled but left it at that. Miroku said a silent prayer to Buddha and thanked him for his dumb luck. Kaede stared wide-eyed at the group, mostly at Hekele, as everyone placed themselves in their original spots on the floor. Inuyasha was full of insults but bit them down...except for one.  
  
"Hekele 2, Sesshoumaru 0." No one was able to suppress his or her laughter after that one. Poor Sesshoumaru could only glare at every single one of them, mostly at Inuyasha, for he was the ringleader. Hekele giggled but came to Sesshoumaru's rescue.  
  
"Sesshoumaru, you can stop being polite, I'm sure there's a death sentence that you want to go through with..." she said, nodding to the monk, who's face grew to one of fear faster than you could say 'HA!' Sesshoumaru understood what she was saying and merely shook his head.  
  
"Why dirty my blade on someTHING so insignificant?" he passively replied. Everyone saw the small exchange of grins the two had at that moment, and they all eyed each other worriedly. They all inched back, expecting an apocalypse but not knowing why. Hekele and Sesshoumaru merely sat there quietly waiting for someone to speak, both loving the unnecessary fear drifting their way.  
  
*******************************************************  
  
2 hours later:  
  
Rin gave Hekele a big hug as they neared the well. It was getting late and it was time to leave. Inuyasha had Kagome securely on his back as he waited at the well for the group to say their good-byes. Sango and Kaede had bid them farewell at the hut, as did Miroku. Kagome smiled at the fact that he wouldn't stray from her friend's side even for a moment. Kaede was preparing more herbs that would heal Sango's broken ribs in a matter of days, which had relived the group greatly. Kagome insisted that she would be able to walk on her ankle in a few days, so when Sango was healed Inuyasha was going to come and get Hekele and her. Sesshoumaru walked next to Hekele and Rin with Jakken at his heals. He was deep in thought and idly wondered how the well worked. Was it a spell? Shikon shards? He had no clue. He watched as Kagome handed Hekele a shard and knew the answer. Shippo gave Kagome another hug and then pounced onto Hekele, giving her one as well, and then he scurried back to the village so that he could bug Miroku. Inuyasha jumped into the well with Kagome still on his back, leaving Hekele, Sesshoumaru, Rin, and Jakken.  
  
"Rin wants to see Hekele-chan again soon!!!" Rin said sadly as Hekele sat on the edge of the well.  
  
"I promise to come back soon Rin, ok?" she said as she gave the girl another hug. Rin nodded and bounded off to play with Shippo, Jakken close in tow, (whether he liked it or not!!!)  
  
"Bye Sesshoumaru," she said, regarding the last person standing with her by the well, "I hope to see you soon too you know, striking fear into the hearts of others can be really entertaining." She watched as a small, (and I mean small,) smile formed on Sesshoumaru's face. He nodded politely and turned to leave. Hekele turned so that she was facing into the well, but before she jumped she said one last thing.  
  
"Thanks again for bringing me back..." With that she jumped in and allowed the blue light to engulf her and take her back to her time. Sesshoumaru paused when he heard her say this, and despite the fact that he knew she couldn't hear him; he couldn't help but reply.  
  
"You're welcome."  
  
************************************************************  
  
Somewhere unknown in the Feudal Era:  
  
A man with long brown hair dressed in noble's clothes watched Inuyasha and Miroku's loving exchanges with the girls he knew they cared deeply for through Kanna's magical mirror. Kanna was a demon with no scent or sensible presence; she wore a white kimono and had white hair, whiter than Inuyasha's. She looked like a harmless child, but armed with her mirror she could steal souls. Naraku was angered that his tiger demon had fumbled the plan to take the girl, Kagome's, jewel shards, and had not counted on the Lord of the Western Land's intervention. He was perplexed as to why he had saved the girl that Kagome had brought with her but saw their conversations and understood the demon's growing feelings for her. He saw that Inuyasha's feelings for Kagome seemed to grow more every day the two spent together, as did Miroku's for the demon slayer Sango. As he pondered this a plan formed in his evil mind. What would happen if this 'love' were to be tested? As the plan formed in his mind he called for his other servant.  
  
"Yes master Naraku?" an older looking girl demon asked. This girl wore her medium-length brown hair up and wore a white, reddish-pink, and blue kimono which had a long slit in each side for easy movement. She had an open fan to her face.  
  
"We are going to test them...I will tell you when to strike, be ready."  
  
"Yes Naraku," said the girl as she turned to walk away.  
  
"Kagura."  
  
"Yes, master?" asked the retreating girl.  
  
"Do not attempt to betray me, I can see everything you do."  
  
"Of course not master Naraku."  
  
****************************************************************  
  
*Me* So.....what did ya'll think of the chappie???  
  
*Random reader* It sucked.  
  
*Me* What?!?! What do you mean it sucked?!?! I put my heart and soul into this fic!!!!!!!  
  
*Kachie* Wait a minute...*walks up behind the reader and pulls off his mask* IT'S INUYASHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
*Me* *gasps* Inuyasha?!? How could you?!?  
  
*Inuyasha* I heard that you were adding another new character and I got jealous.....  
  
*Kachie* Oh, so I made you jealous huh???  
  
*Me* Inuyasha's jealous, Inuyasha's jealous, Inuyasha's jealous, Inuyasha's jealous!!!!!!!!!! Well too bad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
*Kachie* Yep, I am going to make my first appearance in the next chappie, it's called 'Rin's Boredom and Another New Recruit' so R&R and she'll update quicker!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 


	7. Rin's Boredom and a new Recruit

Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Ok...I know that the story seems to be about Hekele right now...but it is because I am still developing the story in my head. When I first write a fan fic it always has to do with me, I decided to try and get away from that by gradually focusing the story on other things, but I will remain a main character. I am beginning to see where I want to go with it, (the story that is,) so after this chapter it should start to be more about everyone. 'A place for everything and everything in its place.' Right now I am trying to find all the 'things', after this chappie I will be putting the collected 'things' in their 'places', do you people understand me???  
As for dedications...OMIGOD.........I DIDN'T DEDICATE THE LAST CHAPTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
Ok, last chapter's dedication goes to my new friend Joy, who read this story, (and doesn't have her own account on F.F.) and reviewed it even though I was blocking anonymous reviews at the time. She e-mailed me her review and told me that she liked my story and gave me ideas for this chapter and the end of the last chapter. Joy, I salute you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
This chapter's dedication goes out to.........MizuCrystal!!!!!!!!! This authoress has an awesome Inuyasha fan fic called 'Bodyguards'! You all have got to read it!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
Disclaimer: I still own diddlysquat...except for Hekele, cuz see, technically Kachie owns Kachie...  
  
*************************************************************  
  
Rin's Boredom and a New Recruit  
  
"Jakken-sama!!!!!!! Come back!!!!!!" Rin yelled as she chased the toad demon around. She had necklaces made of flowers in her hands and she wanted to make Jakken 'pretty' again. Luckily for her, Jakken was clumsy and she was able to catch him after he tripped on an exposed root.  
  
"Rin!!! Leave me alone!!! I am too busy to 'play' with you!!!" he yelled. Rin shook her head.  
  
"Nuh-uh, Sesshoumaru-sama told Jakken-sama to watch Rin while Sesshoumaru-sama was away, so Jakken-sama has to play with Rin!" Jakken groaned as Rin put the flowers on his head and made him 'pretty'. He wondered why Sesshoumaru had insisted on having him watch Rin, it always only ended in trouble...mostly for Jakken. Rin ran off to get more flowers and Jakken reluctantly followed, if anything happened to her Sesshoumaru wouldn't hesitate to cut Jakken into two or more pieces. Rin was getting restless and bored more often now that Hekele had left for a few days. Jakken found that he missed her already, well; the time away from Rin is what he really missed. Rin was the one who missed Hekele. She asked Jakken to sing her a song before bed the first night Hekele was gone and Sesshoumaru had kicked him for his bad singing while covering his own ears when he had finally given in. Rin had decided not to ask him after that. Now here he was, in a field of flowers, covered in flowers, for the tenth time in the past two days. Jakken sighed in defeat, knowing it was in his best interest to just let Rin make a fool out of him. He silently wished for a butterfly or a bird, or SOMETHING to catch Rin's eye and spare him a moment of dignity, but, alas, as if nature herself was mocking him, nothing came, and soon Jakken was buried in Rin's flowers.  
Rin looked at her newly formed mountain of flowers and sighed. She lay on her back in the field and stared at the clouds. Jakken popped his head out of the flowers and panicked. Was she sick? He cautiously walked over to Rin, removing the flowers from his head and neck as he did so. He felt her forehead. It wasn't warm. Rin looked at him oddly but then stared at the clouds again. Jakken looked at her critically. She wasn't pale, she wasn't discolored, she was breathing normally, her heart rate sounded normal even to his demon hearing, and she hadn't hurt herself, so what was wrong?  
  
"Rin, are you feeling alright?" he asked, frightened for his life if she wasn't. She looked at him with spaced out eyes.  
  
"Jakken-sama?" she said, more of a question than a statement. She looked like a possessed doll almost.  
  
"Yes Rin?" Jakken asked, now really frightened for the girl's health.  
  
"Rin's bored." At her words Jakken fell over in both relief and annoyance. He had nearly had a heart attack.  
  
***************************************************************  
  
With Kagome and Hekele:  
  
"So, what have you girls been up to in the Feudal Era???" Ms. Hirageshi asked sweetly with a smile as Kagome hopped over to the kitchen table, with Hekele walking right behind her, just in case.  
  
"It's been two days since the two of you came back and I haven't even asked what happened to you!!! I can't believe it!" Ms. Hirageshi finished, shaking her head. She was still smiling, really smiling.  
  
"Well, a demon attacked and I landed wrong on my ankle...other than that nothing really." Kagome said casually. Hekele eyed her suspiciously but followed her lead.  
  
"Yeah...and we befriended Inuyasha's older brother Sesshoumaru..." she said, glancing at Kagome, who gave an approving nod. Apparently, Ms. Hirageshi wasn't informed of near death situations, which Hekele understood.  
Ms. Hirageshi paused a moment and then kept to what she was doing, smiling still.  
  
"Actually...YOU were the one who befriended him Hekele..." Kagome said with a sly grin. Hekele slugged her in the arm playfully and kept a straight face, but any idiot could tell she was smiling inside. Ms. Hirageshi smiled an even wider smile herself.  
  
"Now both my girls have crushes on dog-boys..." she said playfully. Kagome and Hekele both blushed deep shades of crimson, which only made Ms. H. smile even wider, if it was possible.  
  
**********************  
  
Later that night:  
  
"So...what happened with the tiger demon anyway??? We never got any details back there," Kagome said slyly. Hekele shifted on her bed.  
  
"Well, what do you want to know?" Hekele asked. Kagome gave her a look.  
  
"First of all, what happened to the tiger demon, second, why doesn't Sesshoumaru want to kill you yet, and third, why do you two seem all, 'buddy-buddy'?" Kagome asked, looking and sounding much like a gossiping schoolgirl. Hekele rolled her eyes, but smiled.  
  
"Well, I don't know why he doesn't want to kill me, probably because Rin and I are so close. Sesshoumaru and I are friends too I guess, we talked a little bit, and I guess he listened to what I had to say..." she said truthfully, dancing around the tiger demon part of the subject. Kagome noticed this and narrowed her eyes.  
  
"What about the tiger demon?" she pressed. Hekele sighed, there was no getting out of it now.  
  
"He thought Rin was the one with the shards, so he attacked us. I tried to protect Rin and..."  
  
"And?"  
  
"...and I died. I guess a few seconds later Jakken and Sesshoumaru showed up and killed the tiger demon before it could hurt Rin. Then Sesshoumaru brought me back to life with his Tenseiga..." she whispered, remembering her first breath and seeing Sesshoumaru holding her. Kagome's eyes turned from one of amusement to one of horror in no more than 0.5 seconds.  
  
"You died?!?!?!?!" she exclaimed. Hekele covered her mouth before she could draw her mother's attention to them and come upstairs.  
  
"Yes, I died," she hissed, "But Sesshoumaru brought me back to life."  
Kagome sat on her bed in a stupor. She could not believe what she was being told.  
  
*So that's why Inuyasha could only smell her blood a little bit...* she thought idly as she glared at her friend.  
  
"You're not going back, it's too dangerous." Kagome said. Hekele wanted to slap her.  
  
"No, you can't make me stay here now that I have friends there too. I'm not trying to make you stay and YOU'RE the one hiding all the dangerous stuff from your mom..." she said pointedly. Kagome glared daggers at her and Hekele did the same. Neither noticed the presence in the windowsill.  
  
"Am I interrupting an argument?" asked Inuyasha cockily as the girls almost literally jumped out of their skin from fright.  
  
"SIT!!!" Thud, crash, followed by a:  
  
"OW!!! WHAT WAS THAT FOR WENCH?!?!?!?! JEEZ, ALL I WANTED TO DO WAS VISIT GOD DANG IT!!!!!!" Hekele just sat on her bed watching the exchange with devilish eyes. She got up and opened her guinea pig's cage and watched him walk out toward Inuyasha. Suddenly a loud yelp was heard from the hanyou as Tai greeted him using his teeth. After much yelling, eye rolling, and guinea pig catching, the group all sat o Hekele's bed silently. Inuyasha couldn't take it.  
  
"So what were you two arguing about?" he asked in as nice a voice as he could manage while nursing the bite marks on his hand, (which wasn't that nice mind you.) Kagome fumed all over again.  
  
"The tiger demon that attacked us killed Hekele, Sesshoumaru had to save Rin and then bring her back to life. I don't want her coming back to the Feudal Era now..." she said placidly, not looking at anyone. Inuyasha froze and looked at Hekele as though she were an odd specimen in a science lab.  
  
"He brought you back to life?" he asked stupidly. Hekele nodded. Inuyasha whistled and looked back at Kagome, who was enraged by his reaction.  
  
"How can you side with her?!?" she accused. Inuyasha cringed and covered her mouth as he saw it form a 's'.  
  
"I didn't side with anyone!!! Don't you dare 'sit' me when I didn't do anything!!!" he said quickly, releasing her. Kagome stared at him as though he had betrayed her and whimpered.  
  
"What do you think then???" she managed to say. Hekele looked at Inuyasha pleadingly. Inuyasha scrunched up his eyebrows and was about to say something when a smiling Ms. Hirageshi opened the bedroom door.  
  
"Good evening Inuyasha," she said politely before looking at Hekele with her sugary grin. Hekele gulped, wondering if she was in trouble or not and if so what for.  
  
"Y-yes Ms. Hirageshi?" she asked fearfully. Ms. Hirageshi motioned for her to come downstairs. Hekele obeyed and got off of the bed and began to follow her. Ms. H. turned back to Kagome and Inuyasha.  
  
"You two can come down too, but Inuyasha has to wear a hat." she said. The two looked at each other and shrugged. Kagome gave Inuyasha his usual baseball cap and headed downstairs with him close in tow.  
  
"Kagome, why was your mom smiling like that?" he asked. Kagome shrugged again.  
  
"I have no idea, she has been smiling at Hekele and I like that all day!"  
  
Inuyasha's sensitive nose picked up a new scent. Before he could figure out what it was he and Kagome heard a loud shriek of joy.  
  
"OH MY GOD!!!! KACHIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
*************************************************************  
  
With Rin and Sesshoumaru:  
  
Sesshoumaru was sitting under a tree with a sleeping Rin in his lap as he replayed the day's events in his mind. He had been summoned for a meeting with Naraku. Kikyo had been there as well.  
  
*~*Flashback*~*  
  
Sesshoumaru walked into the clearing where he could smell Naraku distinctly. He truly didn't want to be there, but to deny his presence would only anger the hanyou, and he knew Naraku was much more powerful than he often let on. He didn't want to risk it.  
  
"I see you have decided to come Sesshoumaru." Naraku's filthy voice was heard saying. It was then that Sesshoumaru picked up the scent of decay and caught a glimpse of a soul stealer.  
  
"You have invited the dead priestess as well?" he said casually. Naraku grinned as Kikyo entered the clearing as well. Seeing Sesshoumaru she got suspicious.  
  
"What have you called us out for Naraku?!" she asked angrily. Naraku's evil smile widened a bit.  
  
"Why else?" he asked. Kikyo narrowed her eyes.  
  
"Inuyasha." Sesshoumaru said instinctively. Naraku regarded him and Kikyo tried her damnedest to keep her usual composure. Naraku was the only being she hated more than Inuyasha and Kagome...no, that's a lie...she hated Kagome MUCH more.  
  
"What is your plan?" Kikyo asked more calmly. Sesshoumaru was even calmer.  
  
"What do we get in return?" he asked.  
  
"Inuyasha goes to hell with Kikyo, and YOU get the Tetsusaiga." Naraku said. Kikyo smiled evilly and Sesshoumaru pondered a moment.  
  
"I no longer require the Tetsusaiga." he said placidly. Naraku and Kikyo both raised an eyebrow at this.  
  
"You do not?" Kikyo asked suspiciously.  
  
"I have the superior blade, the Tokijin, I have no need for my father's sword. This Sesshoumaru will have no part in this foolishness." Sesshoumaru said as he turned to leave.  
  
"Have it your way, Lord of the Western Lands..." Sesshoumaru turned to retaliate on the apparent threat but was met with nothing. He grimaced, Naraku and Kikyo had vanished.  
  
*~*End of Flashback*~*  
  
Sesshoumaru had hurried back to his camp in fear of Rin being hurt; Naraku would retaliate eventually, if not at that very moment. When he had arrived at the camp all was well, however, except for Rin's boredom. She had actually covered every inch of Jakken in flowers. The toad demon looked relieved to see his master as he peeled the offending blossoms from his head and wardrobe. Sesshoumaru had scooped up Rin protectively and had let her fall asleep in his arms. He looked at her now and stroked the back of her head in thought. What was Naraku plotting, and why did he want his and Kikyo's help?  
  
************************************************************  
  
With Hekele, Kagome, and Inuyasha:  
  
Kagome and Inuyasha hurried down the stairs only to find Hekele squeezing the living daylights out of possibly the most gothic person Kagome had ever seen. Black hair with red streaks, black pants with chains, a black shirt that had 'Property of Mr. Vampire,' written on it in crimson red, a collar, spiked bracelets, black gloves that only covered half of her fingers, black wrist bands, black eye shadow, and black lipstick were all being sported on the girl. The only indication that she even had a soul was the dancing joy in her dark brown eyes. One look and you could easily tell just how alive she really was. Hekele was about to end that though, Ms. H. had to pry her off of her friend when she started choking.  
  
"What in seven hells are you doing here?!?!?!?!" Hekele was bouncing around in sheer joy and Inuyasha was getting a little bit uneasy. Hekele was usually much more monotone, but right now she seemed to have done a one- eighty from that personality. Kagome was also blinking, she knew her friend could be hyper, but this was out of character.  
  
"Ms. Hirageshi invited me to stay for a while. I called the home and they said that you had been shipped to Japan, my mom went berserk because they were suppose to call her so SHE could interview anyone who was going to adopt you. Just because we aren't technically related doesn't mean she wasn't going to help find her 'un-official daughter' a great place to live!"  
  
"Kachie and her mother called once they were given our number and did a quick interview over the phone, it was quite funny actually. One thing led to another and next thing poor Kachie knew I was dragging her onto a plane to a foreign country for a visit."  
  
Hekele had finally calmed down but something nagged at the back of her head, "Wait, aren't you missing a lot of school? How is that going to work out???" One look at Kachie and Ms. Hirageshi and Hekele's jaw dropped. Kagome caught on as well and had to fight a laugh.  
  
"Well, I kind of got bored and got myself expelled and my mom didn't know where to send me during my one year expulsion so..." Now even Inuyasha had caught on. She was staying and going to school with them for a whole year. Lord save Japan.  
  
************************************************************  
  
With Sango, Miroku, and Shippo:  
  
"When's Inuyasha bringing Kagome and Hekele home?"  
  
"We don't know."  
  
5 min later:  
  
"When's Inuyasha bringing Kagome and Hekele home?"  
  
"We don't know."  
  
5 min later...again:  
  
"When's Inuyasha bringing Kagome and Hekele home?"  
  
"We don't know Shippo, go do something..."  
  
5 min later, (get the pattern?) again:  
  
"When's Inuyasha bringing Kagome and Hekele home?"  
  
"Shippo, we told you, we don't know...now please stop asking us."  
  
5 min later...(last time, I promise!!!) again:  
  
"Sango-"  
  
"SHIPPO, FOR THE LAST TIME, WE DON'T KNOW!!!!! STOP ASKING THAT QUESTION!!!!!!!" Sango yelled at the kitsune as Miroku gave him a quick hit in the head.  
  
"You didn't even know what I was going to ask!!!!!"  
  
"Oh yes we do, you want to know when Inuyasha is bringing Kagome-sama and Hekele-kun back." Miroku said in a very irritated tone. Shippo shook his head.  
  
"All I wanted to know was why Miroku hasn't been acting like himself lately, usually he would have been all black and blue with all the slaps you usually give him...but he hasn't groped you...and as good as that is...I'm worried about him..." Shippo said in a mature tone that any baka could tell was fake. Within the next second the kitsune was launched out of the hut the three were sharing and into the trees beyond it. Sango and Miroku shared a sigh of content relief. It was finally quiet.  
  
"Houshi-sama?" Sango asked timidly. Miroku grimaced at his title, he preferred that his friends called him by his first name, but Sango never seemed to.  
  
"Yes Sango? What's wrong?" he asked, instantly concerned at his love's tone. Not that he would ever call her his love aloud mind you, but it was who she was to him.  
  
"Shippo, despite his usual nonsense, has a point, you have been acting odd these past few days. It's not just the 'no groping' either, thanks for that by the way. But, may I ask, what's wrong?" she pried. Miroku smiled to himself, her concern was sweet, just like she was.  
  
"Nothing is wrong, do not worry. You need to rest, Kaede's potion needs a bit more time to heal you." he said as he gently pressed her back down onto her cot by way of shoulder, (he was trying his damndest NOT to grope her lately.) Sango obeyed willingly, she still was too weak to move around much, and the cot was where she spent most of her time. She couldn't suppress the smile that graced her lips when Miroku draped her blanket over her. Miroku smiled as well. To him Sango was the most beautiful girl, no, woman, that he had ever met, inside and out. He couldn't help but caress her cheek before he got up to walk out of the hut, which had Sango blushing slightly.  
  
"Get some rest Sango, perhaps tomorrow you will be well enough to walk around a bit." he said lovingly. Sango nodded and closed her eyes; having Miroku there when she needed him was a gift that could only be surpassed by two others; Miroku actually loving her, and getting her brother back. These two thoughts plagued her mind as she slipped into a blissful slumber.  
  
************************************************************  
  
In Kagome's Era, (I can't type all those names god dang it!!!!!):  
  
"Kachie...are you serious? Please tell me that this is a really early April Fool's joke. You got yourself EXPELLED?!?!?!?!" Hekele pulled part of her friend's hair to stress her point and make her listen. Kachie winced but nodded proudly. Buyo had made his way into the living room and was currently sniffing and cuddling in Kachie's lap. Inuyasha was pacing the room in deep thought. Kagome was looking at her mom oddly. Both of them wondered whether Ms. Hirageshi had lost her mind taking in yet another teenage girl...for a whole YEAR!!!! Kagome was both excited and exasperated; her mom was just too nice for her own good sometimes. Even if this WAS a cool idea, she wondered if she would survive the year. Her mom was going to be stuck, willingly with THREE teenage girls?!? Kagome thought for a moment.  
  
*Yep...mom lost it....* Just as she was about to say something Souta came bounding into the room.  
  
"Hi Kachie! You got here late, was your plane delayed?" he asked as though he had known the girl his whole life. Kachie rolled her eyes and nodded.  
  
"A two hour delay, can you believe that??? I'm glad you guys were still awake!"  
  
"Speaking of which, what are you doing out of bed Souta? I thought I asked you to go to bed two hours ago???" Ms. H. raised a superior eyebrow. Souta gulped and nodded, but recovered quickly.  
  
"I woke up when I heard all of the shouts of joy and choking noises." he said. Ms. H. rolled her eyes and sent him back to bed. Inuyasha was still pacing. Kachie noticed him for the first time then.  
  
"Hey, who's the biscuit?" she asked both Hekele and Kagome. Inuyasha froze while pacing, knowing that she meant him. Hekele and Kagome looked at each other worriedly and went over to the hanyou to prevent the start of WWIII, unfortunately, they were a little late.  
  
"What the hell does 'biscuit' mean and why are you and Hekele calling me that?!?!?!" he yelled so loud that kami himself probably heard him. Ms. H. rolled her eyes again at the group and decided to get out before Inuyasha got 'sat' into her floor. Kachie was blinking her eyes uncontrollably and then glanced at Hekele, who was shaking her head 'no' along with Kagome. Kachie grinned, pretended not to notice, and looked at the angered hanyou.  
  
"Dude, I was just saying I thought you were cute, no need to act like its an insult..." she said calmly. At first Inuyasha was blushing profusely while he calmed himself down...then he realized that Hekele had also called Sesshoumaru a biscuit. This angered him a bit.  
  
"Are you comparing me to me bastard half brother?!?!?! I am nothing like him!!!!!!!!!" he rounded on her. Hekele took a few steps back. In truth, Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru looked a lot alike with their silver hair and amber eyes, but that's where it ended.  
  
"Well, actually, since you both have silver hair and yellow eyes, yes, I was comparing you a bit when I said he was a biscuit, but I think he's a bigger biscuit."  
  
Inuyasha was insulted, "Why, exactly?" Kagome watched the interaction with interest, Kachie in confusion.  
  
"Because he can keep his temper down and is much better groomed..." Hekele retorted. Inuyasha leaped into the air to pounce on her when Kagome stopped him.  
  
"SIT!!!!!!"  
  
*************************************************************  
  
With Rin and Sesshoumaru:  
  
"Rin!!! Get these disgusting things off of me!!!!!" Jakken yelled as the said girl put another flower necklace on his head. She stood back, surveyed her work, and sighed.  
  
"Jakken-sama, it's hard to make you pretty." Rin grabbed a few more necklaces and put them on him, with much protest. She stood back, surveying her work a second time, and sighed for the fiftieth time that morning.  
  
"Jakken-sama is hopeless." Rin gave up and walked over to Sesshoumaru, who was sitting on a rock by the river they were currently camped at.  
  
"Sesshoumaru-sama, Rin's bored." Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes inwardly, the truth was, he was too, but he wouldn't let Rin know.  
  
"Tend to the horses."  
  
"Rin did already."  
  
"Clean up the camp."  
  
"Rin did that too."  
  
"Skip stones on the river."  
  
"Rin tried and gave up after an hour."  
  
"Play with Jakken?" Sesshoumaru said with a bit of question in his voice. By now he was actually looking at the girl in a bit of awe, if she had done all those things without being asked, she truly had to have been bored.  
  
"Rin just finished doing that, Jakken-sama is too hard to make pretty." Sesshoumaru silently agreed and thought for a moment. There was nothing left for the girl to do.  
  
"Rin misses Hekele-chan and Shippo-chan, can we go visit?" Rin asked hopefully. Sesshoumaru thought for a moment. He had nothing better to do, no reason not to go, and he actually felt as though he WANTED to go back to the village by the well, despite his half brother's presence. He actually had a reason to go back, now that he thought about it. Naraku. The evil hanyou was plotting something and Sesshoumaru's conscious had gotten the better of him, he would warn the small group of Shikon hunters. The last thing Sesshoumaru needed on his shoulders was their death, especially when one, if not two of them were so precious to Rin. It wasn't the reason he wanted to go, but it was the reason he HAD to go. Sesshoumaru pondered a second longer on the reason he wanted to be there, but his mind drew a blank. He looked at a concerned Rin, who was worried that her master had taken so long to decide. He grimaced; those eyes that she always gave him actually sealed his decision.  
  
"We will set out in a few minutes, Jakken!" he yelled, directing his head towards the recovering toad demon, "Round everything up, we are setting out."  
  
"Yes m'lord!" came the small demon's eager reply. Within the next few minutes Rin was jumping up and down on the path leading to the village, Jakken was trying his hardest to keep the clumsy child in one piece, and Sesshoumaru was walking along with his usual placid face, though beneath it was a type of eagerness that he couldn't quite place.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Kagome's Era:  
  
Kagome, Hekele, and Kachie walked down the stairs quietly, not wanting to wake Inuyasha, who had spent the night again. Kagome and Hekele knew that he would probably be awake already, but they were quiet nonetheless. Kagome's mother had allowed them to stay home from school that day, so the girls all slept in that morning. Kagome's new alarm clock was spared. When the girls got downstairs a sleeping Inuyasha on the couch met them. Kachie had laughed when Inuyasha had gotten sat the night before, but had paid it no mind. Hekele had explained that it was because she hung around so many blondes. Inuyasha hadn't gotten the joke. They quietly made their way around him and walked into the kitchen. On the fridge was a note from Kagome's mom; which read:  
  
~I have taken grandpa out with me for the day, so he won't bother  
poor Inuyasha. There is plenty of Ramen in the cupboards, I will  
be back after I pick up Souta from school. Leave a note if you go  
ANYWHERE. Have a fun day!  
-Mom~  
  
"Cool! No school, and grandpa can't try to kill Inuyasha!" Kagome laughed. Kachie gave her an innocent look.  
  
"So is Inuyasha your boy?" she asked slyly, not wasting any time figuring out what was what around the Shrine. Kagome blushed, but Hekele came to her rescue.  
  
"The two are great friends, but Kagome likes him a bit more than that. She hasn't told him though..." Well, she sort of came to her rescue. Kachie nodded.  
  
"I know how that goes, you don't want to lose what you already have by trying to get more; it's hard." she said sympathetically. Kagome nodded in thanks. Kachie grinned as Hekele gave her a proud smile.  
  
"You know Kachie, your getting better at not acting blonde..." she said jokingly. Kagome giggled and Kachie blushed angrily.  
  
"Hey!!! Just because I can be a ditz doesn't mean I act like a..." Kachie trailed off and stared at something on the counter besides Hekele. Hekele raised her eyebrow.  
  
"A...blonde? Kachie I take that back, you're getting worse, and you aren't even blonde!!!!!" Hekele noticed that Kachie wasn't laughing or threatening to punch her lights out...she was still staring at a spot on the counter with her lips quivering in fear. Hekele turned and looked at the counter. There was a BIG, black, furry spider.  
  
Kachie was scared to death of spiders.  
  
*****************  
  
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
Inuyasha jumped and fell onto the floor as the feminine scream reached his very sensitive ears. He was tangled up in the blanket and couldn't get out and he started to panic...until he heard two girls laughing hysterically and one whimpering. It was then that he saw the three girls come out of the kitchen. Kachie was hiding behind Kagome and Hekele was leading the group with a BIG, black, hairy spider crawling up her arm. Inuyasha hated spiders...they reminded him of Naraku.  
  
"When did you wake up?" Kagome asked him sweetly, glad that his hat had stayed on. Inuyasha grumbled as she helped him untangle the blanket. Hekele was fighting back a laugh and Kachie was as far away from her as possible while remaining in the same room.  
  
"When I heard someone proclaiming the apocalypse..." he hissed as he glared at Kachie, who took a few steps back.  
  
"Sorry, she's afraid of spiders...and this little guy just happened to surprise her..." she said as she affectionately tapped the huge spider's head. Inuyasha rolled his eyes.  
  
*How can ANYONE like those hideous things?* he asked himself.  
  
"Listen to you!!! You love anything that is HUGE, has either teeth or claws or BOTH, and has a nasty attitude!!!" exclaimed Kachie in an annoyed tone. Inuyasha idly realized that his older brother was all of the above and inwardly smirked.  
  
"Nope, I am scared to death of lions, you know that." *And tiger demons now...* she thought fearfully as she recalled what had happened less than a week ago.  
  
Inuyasha rolled his eyes again, realizing that this was going to lead to a huge conversation amongst the girls. He decided to break it up as he freely sat up, the offending blanket finally untangled.  
  
"So...what's for breakfast???" he asked. Hekele froze and looked at Kachie and Kagome. All three girls grinned evilly, making Inuyasha gulp.  
  
"PANCAKES!!!!!" Inuyasha wondered what pancakes were as he was promptly pulled up by Kagome and dragged to the kitchen. He didn't miss the fact that they were hand in hand. He smiled a bit as he subconsciously squeezed hers back affectionately. Maybe this wouldn't be SO bad...  
  
**********************************************************  
  
Feudal Era; With the Adults:  
  
"So...you say Naraku is planning something...and Kikyo is in on it?" Miroku repeated slowly, trying to make sense of it all. Sesshoumaru, Jakken, and Rin had returned to the village less than an hour ago, much to everyone's surprise. He had said something about needing to speak with them and had sent Rin to play with Shippo, with poor Jakken in tow.  
  
"Yes...though what specifically they are plotting I cannot be sure, only that it is meant to be your end." Sesshoumaru replied passively, his face not betraying the worry beginning to well up inside of him. *Since when do I worry about my half brother and his human 'friends'? Since when do I worry at all?* he thought to himself, wondering why the offending emotions had started to appear on his conscious.  
  
"What could Naraku have offered Kikyo in order to get her on his side? I thought she 'loved' Inuyasha?" Sango spat out the word 'loved' as though it were the most disgusting word that she had ever heard. Kikyo had stolen all of the shards that the group had gathered at one point and had given them to Naraku, to supposedly aid in his defeat. Likely story!  
  
"He offered her the chance to take Inuyasha to hell with her. She readily excepted, though before hand she was ready to kill Naraku." Sesshoumaru responded. *At least these idiots aren't questioning why I happened to be there...*  
  
"Why were you there Sesshoumaru? Naraku would have known if you had just stumbled upon them..." Miroku asked, as if reading the demon lord's mind.  
  
"*Damn...* I was also invited to their conference, but the prize I was offered did not suit me, so I declined."  
  
"What were you offered?" Sango said from her cot. The three had gathered in the hut the group was staying in and where she had been confined to since her injury. She had walked around a bit with Miroku earlier but was easily worn out. She inwardly smiled as she remembered just how gentle Miroku had been with her, and how ever two steps he would ask if she was alright. It made her feel calmer and happier somehow. Her injury had finished healing over night but the lack of exercise had taken its toll and she was easily tired. Damn if she wouldn't love some of Hekele's coffee NOW...  
  
"I was offered Tetsusaiga. However, I no longer require the blade, so the deal was not sufficient," said the demon lord with practiced patients. He had expected the question, but had wanted to avoid it. Miroku nodded to him in gratitude; Sango did as well. For the demon to have declined the sword he must have had a change of heart, which they appreciated immensely. Sesshoumaru HAD had a change of heart...he just wasn't the type to acknowledge it, even within his own mind.  
  
***********************  
  
With the kids:  
  
"I'm gonna catch you Rin!!!" Shippo yelled at the top of his lungs as the two children started another game of tag. Jakken had fallen asleep under a tree and wasn't bothering them now, so they decided to be as loud as they wanted. If he woke up they would apologize but not mean it in the least...after all, he had been on their case about running around and Rin getting scratched up since they had left to adults to some talk they had to have. Sesshoumaru wouldn't get mad if Rin was a little scratched up as long as no one purposely hurt her, if she fell and rolled around and bounced up and down he wouldn't care, as long as she was having fun and was staying out of trouble. Jakken just didn't know where to draw the line between adult and pest.  
  
"Nuh-uh, Shippo-kun won't catch Rin this time!!!" said the little girl excitedly. She was running around in huge circles and Shippo was having a hard time catching her because she kept changing directions at the last moment. He leapt into the air and was about to tackle the girl playfully when he was grabbed by his tail and yanked upward. Rin turned around and screamed at what she saw, causing Jakken to wake up from his nap. He saw what was happening and panicked; he used his two- headed staff to produce a huge amount of flame and shot it at their attacker. Shippo wailed in pain as he was burnt a bit and Rin screamed even more out of fear. Jakken ceased his fire to prevent the kitsune further injury and was flung into a tree by the attacker, knocking him out. Rin screamed one last time before she was hit in the head, causing her to collapse as well; Shippo was already in the land of unconsciousness. The last thing either child heard was a feminine chuckle; a very frightening chuckle.  
  
************************  
  
With the adults:  
  
Sesshoumaru froze when he heard Rin scream; Miroku and Sango did as well. Upon hearing Shippo's scream as well the three bolted up from their seated positions in the hut and ran to where they heard the sound. Kirara had transformed and had been mounted by the injured Sango quicker than was probably good for the demon slayer's health, but no one cared; something was seriously wrong. Sesshoumaru growled low and hard when Rin's young and delicate smelling blood reached his nose. Someone, or someTHING was about to die. No one would live if Rin bled.  
  
Seeing his eyes glow blood red and his demonic features turn even more threatening Sango gulped inwardly, "What is it Sesshoumaru...what do you smell?" she called to him. Miroku looked at the demon as well, now noticing the change. Sesshoumaru only growled deeper and sped ahead with ease. Glancing at Miroku, Sango decided to let him onto Kirara and they sped ahead as well, hoping things weren't as bad as they appeared.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Kagome's Era:  
  
All seemed to freeze for a moment as chills ran up everyone's spines. Something was wrong. They were eating breakfast and suddenly they all felt a wave of panic. It felt like a warning.  
  
"What the hell was that??? You guys felt it too right?" Kachie asked lowly. Nothing good EVER happened after she got that sort of chill. Inuyasha, Kagome, and Hekele all nodded, but they seemed to know something, and Kachie knew that they were hiding something.  
  
"Tell me." The group looked at her in surprise, out of their momentary stupor for a moment.  
  
"Tell me what you're hiding, you know what that chill was don't you?" Kachie clarified. All eyes went to Hekele, as if asking her permission to speak. Her eyes got big and she shook her head violently.  
  
"Nuh-uh, this is NOT my department, repeat, NOT my department, YOU tell her what's going on Inuyasha..." she said, directing her eyes to his. Inuyasha growled but saw this as a way to get Kachie to leave. It wasn't that he didn't like her...he was just annoyed by her. Even though he was sure it would wear off a bit later on...he didn't want to deal with another annoying 'school-girl' right now. He inwardly smirked and remembered the spider.  
  
*If that scared her...maybe seeing a 'freak with dog ears' will give her a heart attack...* he thought wickedly. Inuyasha finally resolved to his little plan and removed his hat, making sure to twitch his ears for her to see them clearly. He also bared his fangs a bit and flexed his claws...just for effect. Kagome's jaw dropped at what he did. She couldn't believe that Inuyasha would so willingly reveal himself to someone...especially after doing so to Hekele. He had wanted to then, but she sensed a different sort of attitude towards Kachie, so why did he...  
Then it hit her. *That baka is trying to scare her!!!!!! He must have a brain the size of a damn pea!!! Every time a girl sees his ears they immediately...*  
  
"Oh my god!!! Those are sooooooooo cute!!!!!!!!!" Kachie screamed before running over to feel his ears. Inuyasha groaned as he realized that she hadn't even noticed his claws or fangs. What was it with girls in this era and not knowing 'danger' when they were hit in the face with it a few times? Poor Inuyasha was all but flattened when Kachie started tugging and playing with his ears. He was beyond irritated.  
Hekele sighed and pulled Kachie off of Inuyasha long enough for him to run behind Kagome. Kagome rolled her eyes and muttered just low enough for him to hear.  
  
"Nice plan, I think it backfired on you though..." Inuyasha noticed that it was said in a slightly playful tone, and he growled a bit. Kagome smiled and remained his faithful shield for a moment longer until Kachie calmed down and the chill was remembered.  
  
"So...Inuyasha having dog ears is part of all this?" Kachie managed to say. The small group nodded.  
  
"We'll explain everything later, just help us get ready to leave now." Hekele said in a commanding tone. Kachie gave her a confused look.  
  
"Leave? Where to?" she asked in a cautious tone. Hekele and Inuyasha shared a grin; Kagome just rolled her eyes. She swore these two could read each other's minds when it came down to it...  
  
"We're not going too far...just backwards a bit..." Hekele teased. Kachie scowled.  
  
"Backwards?"  
  
"Yes...about five hundred years backwards...to the Feudal Era." Kachie just stared at her friend as she helped clean the table.  
  
"Hekele, I know I told you to liven up a bit when I last saw you...but I didn't mean to start doing drugs and going on lots of bad trips..." she said seriously. Hekele gave her a decently hard hit in the head and growled a bit, mimicking Inuyasha.  
  
"Dork...you'll see..." Inuyasha and Kagome rolled their eyes. This was going to be a LONG explanation...again.  
  
***************************************************************  
  
Feudal Era:  
  
Sango watched as Sesshoumaru and Miroku paced past the well for what seemed like the hundredth time. No one knew what to do. Sesshoumaru wanted to go after Rin, but Miroku and Sango thought that they should try to wait for Inuyasha to bring the girls back. Since the kitsune was missing as well, Sesshoumaru had reluctantly agreed. Sango couldn't shake the feeling that Sesshoumaru was doing this against his better judgment, although she was happy that he was waiting with them, even she wanted to be out searching for the children and Kagura.  
Kagura. She had taken the children. Sesshoumaru had detected her scent when they had arrived at the place where the children were taken. No one was happy about it either. When Jakken had woken up he had explained what had happened. Needless to say, Sesshoumaru wasn't the only person who wanted to murder him for falling asleep on the job.  
After what seemed like an eternity the well began to glow a bright blue, signifying the group's return. Inuyasha jumped out of the well with Kagome and was followed by Hekele, who was climbing the vines, and another person, who was at the bottom of the well staring upward also getting ready to climb up.  
Sesshoumaru helped Hekele out of the well, much to everyone's surprise, and had he not been the type of demon to hide his emotions, he may have actually hugged her. He was just that distressed and worried, although, he wouldn't willingly show those emotions either.  
When the last person was out of the well everyone examined her. She was dressed much like Hekele, but had even less color on; all was black except for her hair, which had bright red streaks in it.  
Kachie had been briefed on the story before they had all jumped into the well. She knew about the Shikon no Tama and Naraku. She had also been given a small description of the group that her friends traveled with and their overall mission. She had insisted on coming to help, and since she had a sword of her own, (she had been in the same martial arts class as Hekele,) she could defend herself pretty well, and no one had disagreed. After leaving a note and feeding the cat and guinea pig they had left. Now she was looking at the group before her, mentally matching each one with the description from earlier.  
  
"Group, I would like you to meet Kachie, Kachie, this is the group. I told you we were going to travel back in time!" Hekele said back and forth from Kachie to everyone, signifying her newly awakened stress. No Shippo had come to greet Kagome, and there was no Rin with Sesshoumaru and Jakken. They had been right, something was wrong, very wrong.  
  
"Where are the kids?" Inuyasha asked worriedly, noticing the missing children as well. Kagome was beginning to get frantic, Shippo was usually bouncing up and down all over the place, and since he wasn't she was worried.  
  
Sango looked from Miroku to Sesshoumaru, willing for one of them to speak. Miroku took the cue.  
  
"While they were playing...Kagura took them...we were discussing something in the hut and we heard them scream, when we got there they were already gone..." he trailed off. Sesshoumaru's eyes darkened in self-hatred for allowing Rin to be taken from him a second time by one of Naraku's minions. Hekele noticed this and stepped closer to him; giving him a comforting smile.  
  
"Hey...we'll get them back...I promise...they'll be ok...Rin will be alright Sesshoumaru-sama..." she said soothingly, using his respective title to emphasize her promise. Surprisingly, it seemed to work. Sesshoumaru's face could be seen holding three emotions at once: annoyance at her need to comfort, surprise at her sudden show of respect for him, and warmth at her attempt to help. He didn't wish to betray the emotions he was feeling, so he merely nodded in gratitude, but Hekele understood.  
  
"So...we're off to save the kids?" Kachie asked, sudden anger apparent in her voice. What kind of bitch kidnaps kids?!? Sure, there were lots of sickos in the world, but still!  
  
"Yes, we are. Which way does Kagura's scent lead?" Kagome said suddenly, anger burning in her more than fear at Shippo's disappearance. This was the second time in the past week, and she, being like a mother to him, was beyond pissed.  
  
"East." Sesshoumaru said with practiced calmness. Kagome nodded and looked at her growing group of friends. They were an odd bunch, but they were going to save the kids, no matter what the cost. Even Kachie was acting as though she had known them all her life, and such dedication warmed Kagome's heart. Yes, adding another friend to their group had been a good idea. Sango was also giving Kachie an approving nod and, catching Kagome's eye, silently agreed. They would need all the help they could get.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
*Me* Another chappie bites the dust!!!!!! Muahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
*Lawyers* Stupid Hekele......  
  
*Me* Can I help it if I'm beautiful and talented?  
  
*Lawyers* Beautiful?!?! Hahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
*Me* *sniffles* Waaaaahhhhhh!!!!!! You ass holes are so mean to meeee!!!!!!  
  
*Lawyers* Too bad...you are so stupid...  
  
*Sesshoumaru* *growls* Excuse me??? What did you call her?  
  
*Lawyers* Oh shit...umm, nothing Lord Sesshoumaru...we were just...joking?  
  
*Me* Nuh-uh...you guys were being mean to me!!! *cries some more.*  
  
*Sesshoumaru* *wraps arms around Hekele and gives her a little squeeze* Don't worry...those lawyers won't live long enough to meep as long as they keep this up.  
  
*Lawyers* Umm...we know! R&R!!! If you R&R we might live long enough to act stupid in the next chappie!!!  
  
*Kachie* *poofs back into fic* In the next chappie I get to meet Koga...and we try to save the kids! If you wanna know what happens...R&R!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 


	8. Kids, Koga, and Kachie

Kagome's Voice and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Well, here we are...at the beginning of yet another chapter...wonderful isn't it???  
Ok...I better drink my coffee before I drive you all insane...*drinks coffee* ok, all better!!!!! Well, to those of you who think that Kouga and Kachie are gonna get together..................are right!!!!!!! Kachie's favorite animals are wolves, so that should give her a bit of an edge over Kagome. Believe me, Kagome won't mind. Things will start off kinda funny between this couple though...like the way they meet, so sit back and enjoy the ride!!!!!!!!!  
  
P.S. This chapter is dedicated to my other best friend Karli...who got me a ticket to go see CLAY AIKEN in concert in August!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Karli, I owe you BIG!!!!!!!!  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing  
  
*************************************************************  
  
Kids, Kouga, and Kachie:  
  
Feudal Era; with the group:  
  
Tired. That one word described the entire group of travelers after an entire day of searching for their young companions. And if the demons were tired...can you picture the humans?  
  
"Sesshoumaru, I think we need to take a break..." Inuyasha said warily, after looking back at the group behind him and his half-brother.  
  
"And why is that, Inuyasha, we just took one!!!" Sesshoumaru retaliated. Inuyasha rolled his eyes.  
  
"First of all, that was six hours ago, second, they are trying to keep up with US and are actually doing a pretty good job, and third, they are so worried that they won't stop until we stop. They haven't even been complaining like they usually do. Take a look, they're like the living dead back there..." Inuyasha retorted. In truth, he was tired, and when he was tired, his companions were usually already dead asleep of exhaustion. He knew that Sesshoumaru was tired as well, Inuyasha could smell it, but he knew that Sesshoumaru wouldn't quit until he found Rin. At this rate, the group would be dead before they even found the kids.  
Sesshoumaru glanced back at the group and nearly did a double take. Kagome was walking next to Kirara, who looked like she was about to die of heat exhaustion with all of her fur and with Sango, Miroku, and Kachie on her back. The humans had taken turns riding the cat, out of pure need to aid each other when they were about to collapse. Hekele was rounding up the end looking like she was about to pass out due to heat exhaustion as well. She had Kachie's backpack, Kagome's backpack, her own backpack, Sango's boomerang, and Miroku's staff. The group had one by one, very effectively, used her as their personal luggage carrier, and it was killing her. Sesshoumaru sighed. Inuyasha was right; they deserved a break, and needed one badly.  
  
"Fine," was all he said before stopping. Inuyasha smiled triumphantly and turned to the group.  
  
"Ok guys, we're setting up camp for the night." Everyone froze, then smiled, unable to show their undying gratitude any other way at the moment. Hekele decided to stop playing the 'good samaritin' and dropped everyone's stuff, sighing heavily as she did so. She and Kagome plopped down where they stood and silently thanked kami for his mercy. Sango, Miroku, and Kachie sheepishly walked over to Hekele and grabbed their respective items from her little pile when Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha had glared at them. Sure, Kagome could handle Inuyasha if he got mad, but Hekele didn't look like she was about to sweet talk Sesshoumaru into not killing them, she seemed to be plotting quite the opposite actually.  
  
"Thank you Hekele for holding my staff..." Miroku said a bit too quickly.  
  
"And my boomerang..." Sango added, giving Sesshoumaru a fearful glance.  
  
"And my backpack..." Kachie said, slowly understanding why everyone was jumpy when Sesshoumaru glared at her.  
  
"Thanks a bunch for holding my backpack Hekele, I'm surprised that you could carry all that!" Kagome said sweetly, and honestly. She had been the first person to ask for help, everyone else had just plain taken advantage of the poor girl's helpful mood. Sesshoumaru gave Kagome an approving glance, knowing that her request had been genuine to start with, glared at the rest of the group once more, and headed under a tree to rest.  
  
"No sweat Kags...I know YOU meant to take it back after a while until THEY piled their CRAP on top of it..." Hekele said, acid dripping with her words. The group gulped and edged away slowly, just in case she found the energy to take out her katana.  
  
Inuyasha looked at the group and sighed, "There's a hot spring about a quarter of a mile north of here so you can bathe if you want...when you can stand again." The girls gave him a grateful smile and nodded their heads. Inuyasha walked over to Kagome, who was still sitting where she had let herself fall.  
  
"You want some help?" he asked, holding out his hand for her to take, a tint of red showing on his cheeks. Kagome blushed a bit as well as she nodded and took his hand, allowing him to pull her up. Inuyasha blushed a bit more as he wrapped his other arm around her waist for support as he walked her to a nearby tree. He then retrieved her backpack from Hekele and gulped when she smiled mischievously at him, knowing all to well what that little 'smile' meant. He was also aware of Sango and Miroku's stares as he walked back to where Kagome now sat. He sat down next to her and opened the compartment he knew had some of Kagome's 'bottled water' and handed one to her. Kagome gave him a slightly surprised look.  
  
"Arigato, Inuyasha, that's sweet of you..." she said warmly, meaning every word. Inuyasha feh'ed and looked away quickly, not wanting her to see him blush anymore than she had already. Kagome smiled, knowing that to be Inuyasha's standard, 'you're welcome', and gently laid her head on his shoulder.  
  
She was the only one not aware that Inuyasha resembled a bleeding tomato with an exceptionally red face to match his haori and pants.  
  
**********************  
  
With the kids:  
  
Rin woke up and felt cold. She shivered and sat up, causing her head to surge in pain. The little girl whimpered but refused to lie back down. She looked around at her surroundings and noticed Shippo nearby, he was staring out of a small hole in the roof of the cave they were in. Rin didn't see any bars, so she didn't quite understand why Shippo hadn't woken her up so they could run away.  
  
"Shippo-chan?" she asked, and was appalled by her own voice, which sounded hoarse and weak to her delicate ears. Shippo spun around and bounded over to his companion and hugged her, glad that she was awake and for the most part alright as well. Rin squeezed him back and whispered to him, since her voice seemed not capable of much else.  
  
"Where are we Shippo-chan? Where are Sesshoumaru-sama and Jakken- sama? Rin is scared..." she said. Shippo let go of her and shook his head.  
  
"I don't know where they are, or where we are for that matter, when I woke up we were already here."  
  
"Rin sees no bars, why can't we leave?" asked the frightened girl.  
  
Shippo grimaced, "I tried to walk to the mouth of the cave but there is a barrier of some sort made by magic, and there's one up there too..." he said, pointing to the hole in the roof. Rin curled up and started to cry, she was scared, and she was cold. Shippo hugged her again and silently prayed for Inuyasha and Kagome to come and find them soon, he had no idea where Kagura was at the moment, and he didn't want to either.  
  
"It'll be ok Rin, I'm sure Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha are looking for us right now, and they'll be here soon to rescue us...just you wait..." he said as calmly as he could while snuggling close for warmth, for he was cold as well. Rin silently nodded but tears still streamed from her eyes.  
  
"Rin hopes so..."  
  
*********************  
  
With the group:  
  
Hekele couldn't help but feel guilty as she soaked herself in the hot spring. Rin and Shippo were being held captive somewhere and she was soaking in a nice warm hot spring. Judging on how Kagome, Sango, and Kachie were acting, they felt the same way.  
  
"So, what are we going to do?" Hekele asked. The others looked at her a bit oddly before answering.  
  
"What do you mean Hekele?" Kagome asked.  
  
"I mean, when we find the kids, what are we going to do? What's the plan of attack? What are Kagura's weaknesses?" she replied. The group froze, despite the hot water.  
  
"Well, we usually just go in and fight. We don't usually have a plan of attack..." Sango said meekly, realizing how foolish the words sounded even to her. Hekele sighed deeply and plunged herself under the water so that she was completely submerged. The three remaining girls swore that they heard some sort of muffled scream come from the water right before Hekele reemerged with a really red face.  
  
"Are you alright?" Kachie asked, mentally laughing her head off. Hekele smiled.  
  
"Of course, I'm fine, why wouldn't I be???" she replied sweetly.  
  
"Because we never have a plan of action before we go into battle?" Sango said in a questioning tone. Hekele scowled a bit at this but kept her cool.  
  
"What weapons can you use Kagome?" she asked, changing the subject.  
  
"Just my bow..." she said meekly.  
  
Hekele frowned, "What happens when you run out of arrows?"  
  
Kagome looked at her and said meekly, "Inuyasha saves me..." This time when Hekele sighed she just tilted her head upward and counted backwards from ten.  
  
"Wow...you guys got her to count...I'm impressed, she must REALLY be frustrated!!!" Kachie piped. Hekele glared at her through one eye. Kachie barely had time to blink before she was dunked into the water. When she resurfaced, Hekele continued.  
  
"Ok, we need to do something about this. First, we need to teach Kagome how to use some other weapon, you and me too Kachie, I KNOW you can only handle a sword, and even though I can also use my sais I am a bit uneasy with us only having weapons that work at close range. Second, we need to get the boys together to help us plan how we are going to attack. If all you do is just feel the whole thing out and swing blindly, it will surprise the enemy to have an organized method..." she said confidently. Sango and Kagome slowly nodded their heads in agreement.  
  
"You know...that could work...and it wouldn't hurt any of us to learn how to use a new weapon. Sango can use her boomerang AND her katana, but all I can do is use my bow...and it's pretty useless when demons get close, it would help to have a closer ranged weapon to use." Kagome said thoughtfully. Sango and Kachie agreed.  
  
"Well, lets go and talk to the boys...wait, did you hear that?" Kagome whispered that last part. Sango listened and heard some rustling in the bushes.  
  
"Miroku..." she whispered. Kachie gave her a surprised look, which she ignored.  
  
"Just when I thought he was getting better at this..." Sango continued.  
  
"Better? What makes you say that?" Hekele asked quietly.  
  
"...He hasn't groped me once since you and Kagome left...he was REALLY helpful but he didn't even pretend like he wanted to cop a feel...in truth, I was worried about him. Happy and grateful, but worried..." she explained. Hekele and Kagome nodded in understanding and Kachie just looked at them like they were insane.  
  
"Sooooo, since we are in here and he is over there, we can't get our clothes...so what are we going to do?" Kagome asked. Sango looked around in thought and Hekele just grinned. This got the group's attention.  
  
"I do believe I have a plan..."  
  
*******************************  
  
With Miroku:  
  
Miroku snickered to himself as he watched the girls bathe. He knew that he was going to get murdered by Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha when he returned and then by the girls when they found out, but he concluded that it was worth it. He struggled to hear what they were saying until this one line caught his attention, one that Sango said.  
  
"You are right, I confess, I love him, I love the damned monk sooo much..."  
  
Miroku nearly had a heart attack. Had Sango, the undeclared love of his life, just said that she loved him? He struggled to hear more, this time Kagome spoke.  
  
"I knew it! Why don't you tell him? You know he loves you back..."  
  
Miroku puffed out his chest in pride, until he heard Sango speak again.  
  
"If only it were so, but he always looks at other women and asks them to bear his children, he has never asked me to bear his children, though if I thought he loved me I would say yes. But what love can there be if he only sees other women and not me?"  
  
Her words were so poetic, and yet so tragic. Miroku was being torn inside. Sango was right, he always paid attention to any other women he had met, and never used that kind of persistence in winning her heart over. He was two steps away from revealing himself and confessing his love and devotion to her when he heard her sweet and sad voice again.  
  
"I guess I will never be able to be loved, not by the one man I cherish so much. If only he were here I would confess my love to his face, just so he knew how deeply I held him in my heart..."  
  
That sealed it. Miroku came running out of the bushes and oddly enough felt himself trip and fall face first to the ground.  
  
**************************  
  
With the girls:  
  
It was rough, but it had to be done. Kachie and Hekele dove under water and swam over to the edge, knowing that the bubbles that the spring offered would hide them. Miroku didn't even notice their absence. They swam over on either side of the bushes and waited for him to come running out and Sango's supposedly open and waiting arms. When he made his move they linked arms and tripped him. While his face was full of dirt they pulled him into the water and dunked him. Kagome and Sango were laughing as they scurried out of the hot spring and over to their clothes. Kachie gave Miroku a satisfying push deeper and followed Hekele out and into the shelter of the bushes to change. When the monk surfaced it was all the girls could do not to roll around laughing. When they were all dressed they came out and approached the monk, who had just fully realized that he had been tricked.  
  
"Are you ok Miroku? Sorry buddy but it had to be done, we wouldn't want you getting a full view now do we?" Hekele asked evilly. Kachie's arms were folded across her chest, still wanting an explanation for the lack of privacy while bathing. Kagome and Sango walked over to Miroku last and looked him over. He wasn't moving, he was just standing there, his face void of any emotion.  
  
*Oh Kami...did we go to far? Is he mad? Does he hate me now?* Sango thought to herself sadly as she approached Miroku's side, "Are you alright Houshi-sama?" she asked quietly. Miroku gave her a half grin.  
  
"I'm not mad if that's what you think...I am just trying not to show the pain..." he said.  
  
"Pain?" Kagome asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Yes...it seems that when I was tripped that I broke my nose...and it is killing me...AAAHHHH!!!!!!!!!!" he yelled, giving up his short-lived resolve. Hekele and Kachie fought laughter as they helped the poor monk sit down as he held his nose in pain. Sango was mortified and was apologizing to him at a mile a minute and Kagome was trying to figure out what to do in order to help. Between shouts of pain Miroku laughed a bit.  
  
"I have to admit...that was a great trick though I fell for it in a heartbeat..." he said honestly, looking directly at Sango as he said it, causing her to blush unwillingly.  
  
Hekele, seeing that everything was under control, except for Miroku's broken nose, spoke up, "Well, let's head back so that we can take care of his nose...I'm sure Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru will want an explanation..."  
  
Miroku froze in sudden fear.  
  
****************************  
  
With the boys:  
  
Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru saw the girls come back through the woods and their eyes widened. The girls seemed happy...did they not realize that they had been spied on? Usually they would have picked up on the monk's presence and promptly maimed him...but they didn't seem angry or disturbed. Inuyasha cursed under his breath, that monk had left when neither he nor Sesshoumaru were looking, and they hadn't wanted to go to the springs themselves...Inuyasha knew first hand what would happen if he showed up there. Multiple 'sits', that's what. Sesshoumaru also looked as though he wanted to wring the monk's neck. How could such a 'holy' man be so thick headed and indecent? Weren't monks taught to be chaste and pure? Obviously this one had dosed off during such preachings... Jakken, who had been so silent throughout the day that no one had noticed him, was wondering the same thing... and what his master would do when the idiotic 'monk' returned. Sesshoumaru glared daggers at Inuyasha, clearly saying without words that they should have at least shouted warnings to the bathing girls. Inuyasha gave an equally menacing glare to the forest, stating that he smelled the monk heading their way.  
When Miroku came into view it was all Inuyasha could do not to laugh. The monk's nose was swollen to at LEAST three times its normal size. Sesshoumaru saw the sight and smirked openly. The talking girls stopped their chatter and walked over to the monk.  
  
"Well Miroku...how's your nose? Like I said before, we didn't MEAN to break it...we just wanted to make sure you didn't see more than you already had...which, since you seem discouraged, was thankfully not much..." Kachie said through gritted teeth. She had still not forgiven the monk. Hekele handed Sango some medical tape.  
  
"Here, I'll pop his nose back into place and you tape it there so that it heals properly..." she said gingerly. Miroku's eyes got wide and he backed away from Hekele.  
  
"Umm, Hekele, how do you 'tape' the nose? I don't want to cause him any more pain..." Sango said truthfully. Hekele nodded.  
  
"Ok Sango, I'll just do all of it and you can watch..." Miroku backed even farther away at these words, taking shelter behind Kagome. Inuyasha saw this and glared at the monk, willing him to know that if he tried anything that he would be twenty meters below sea level before Kagome could say 'sit'. Miroku understood.  
  
"Oh don't be such a baby Miroku, I promise that I will be as gentle as possible, but if you want it to heal properly then you will have to let me set it..." Hekele said in a motherly tone, which the group found odd because Miroku was at least three years older than her.  
  
"Only if you promise not to purposely hurt me, Lady Hekele, will I let you anywhere near my poor nose..." said the monk. Hekele nodded and kneeled down in front of the monk so that she was on her knees and could access his nose easily. She unwillingly gave Miroku a good view of her chest, which he took full advantage of. Hekele was rather annoyed but decided that the mild humiliation would be worth it in the end...  
  
"Miroku, I am not going to lie to you...this is going to hurt... a lot..." she warned. Miroku brushed it aside and continued his little 'inspection'. Hekele grinned. She knew that she only had one chance to both make the monk miserable and to place his nose into its correct position, so she had to make it count both ways. She held one hand where the edge of his nose should be and swiftly, but forcefully, slammed her other hand into the other side of his nose, moving it a whole two centimeters and into its original place on his face. The monk screamed in pain.  
Inuyasha had to hold onto his ears in order to prevent himself from going deaf; Sesshoumaru did the same. Jakken followed suit.  
  
"YYYAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!! Lady Hekele!!!!! I thought you weren't going hurt me!!!!!" Miroku yelled in pain. Hekele motioned for him to stay still so that she could bandage his nose in place, the monk reluctantly obeyed.  
  
"I promised not to hurt you on purpose...but I warned you that it would hurt a lot..." Hekele said as she bandaged his nose with the medical tape. Sango was behind the monk holding him in place and repeatedly apologizing for the broken nose as she had done back at the spring. Kagome was standing next to Inuyasha and Kachie; they didn't know whether to laugh or feel pity for the poor monk. Jakken had gone to tend to the fire and Sesshoumaru was counting down the seconds until Hekele would move so that he could dismember the monk. For some reason, the concentrated look on Miroku's face as he examined Hekele's chest enraged the demon lord. Finally, after a few more minutes, Hekele put down the tape and examined the nose.  
  
"I'm done Miroku, now that wasn't too bad now was it?" she said. Miroku got that perverted look in his eyes.  
  
*I may not be able to SEE her bottom, but I wonder...* he thought as his hands slowly reached behind Hekele as she stared into his face, awaiting an answer.  
  
"Oh, it was worth it..." he trailed off as he gave her butt a healthy squeeze and rub. Hekele froze. Her katana and sais were in her backpack and she didn't want to hurt him any more, but she had to retaliate somehow...  
Thankfully for her, Sesshoumaru had just had about enough of the monk's antics and within two seconds of the actual grope he had Hekele behind him and was within inches of the monk's face as he spoke.  
  
"You shall cease and desist your inappropriate behavior for the remainder of this 'trip' if you wish to have a nose for her to put back into place. If you wish to show gratitude for her uncalled for kindness towards you and your injury despite your deservence of such, then a simple 'thank you' will suffice."  
Miroku just stared at Sesshoumaru in complete and utter fear, for the demon's trademark features were darkening and his eyes flickered to a threatening red. The monk gulped and nodded in understanding. The rest of the group stood there in complete awe; Sesshoumaru had just stuck up for Hekele.  
  
*Damn...she's got him TRAINED!!! I wonder what ELSE she can do.* Inuyasha thought, shocked. Hekele, who was still behind her savior, was no exception to the surprise of the group. She gave Sesshoumaru a curious look, which he didn't see, and smiled a bit. Touching his shoulder gently, she spoke.  
  
"Arigato Sesshoumaru, I didn't have my katana with me so I couldn't chop off his head like I threatened to..." At this, Miroku's eyes widened even more in fear, if at all possible, and he crawled backwards away from the two, quickly. Sesshoumaru paused as his demonic features returned to normal and granted Hekele a glance of curiosity, which she smiled broadly at.  
  
"The first time he 'got friendly' I threatened to chop his head off and feed the rest of his corpse to some sharks...and until now he held me to my word..." she trailed off, glaring at the monk, clearly wishing that she could go through with her threat at the moment. Sesshoumaru gave her a content nod, signifying his respect for the threat and stalked off to the tree he had been at earlier. Hekele smiled and turned to Inuyasha.  
  
"Oh Inuyasha..." she said. The hanyou gulped, thinking he was in trouble.  
  
"What?" he asked, trying to sound calm. Hekele smiled sweetly.  
  
"We need to talk about your fighting 'strategy', or rather, your lack of one..."  
  
*************************  
  
With the kids:  
  
Shippo and Rin were sitting there, staring at the seemingly open cave entrance. They knew better though. After Rin's little break down they had tried everything to get out...twice. Shippo sat about two feet from the barrier, facing it. Rin was lying down looking up at the hole in the roof, both children trying to think of something that they may have missed. No such luck was to be found. After a while Rin got up and walked over to Shippo.  
  
"Did YOU think of anything???" she asked. Shippo shook his head. Rin sighed.  
  
"Rin didn't either...Rin wishes we could just walk right out..." she continued. Shippo nodded.  
  
"Me too...ARGHH!!! This is frustrating!!!" He grabbed a stick that was lying next to him and flung it at the barrier, expecting it to bounce back. It went right through. The kids looked at each other in shock. Then they smiled.  
  
"Rin thinks we found something!!!"  
  
"Me too!!! Quick, gather a bunch of sticks so we can try this out!!!"  
  
*****************************  
  
With the rest of the group:  
  
It was just too funny. Kagome was sitting next to Inuyasha watching as Sango tried to teach Hekele and Kachie how to throw her boomerang.  
  
The farthest it ever got was two feet.  
  
"Oi, when are they gonna figure out that they can't throw the damn thing? I thought they were going to learn how to USE the weapon, not get it stuck in the ground!" Inuyasha said irritably as he munched on the ramen he had conned Kagome into giving him. Hekele heard and glared at him dangerously as she mentally thought up her hit list so that when she COULD throw the boomerang, she would...  
  
*Victim number one, Inuyasha...* she thought. Kachie reared the boomerang back and stumbled, causing it to hit Hekele in the head, hard.  
  
*Victim number two, Kachie!* Hekele vowed darkly as she glared at her friend. Kachie smiled weakly before speaking to the evil figure that had momentarily become Hekele.  
  
"Your turn?" Hekele grabbed the boomerang and chased Kachie around the camp, practically destroying most of whatever the boomerang came in contact with.  
Sesshoumaru watched the scene with a bemused expression on his face; even he couldn't help but think that watching Hekele go on a rampage with a weapon she didn't even know how to use was funny. He watched as Jakken was stepped on, multiple times. The demon slayer, Sango, was running after the other two girls pleading about being gentle with her weapon. She wasn't having much luck, however. The monk was sitting as far away from the carnage as possible, and looked to be meditating. He watched as the monk peeked open an eye and shook his head, muttering something about how immature some people were. He should talk. Hekele stopped chasing Kachie and consentrated on throwing the boomerang. It got a grand total of five feet before getting stuck in the ground. The group laughed again as Kachie tried to pull it out. Once she did, she took aim for the millionth time that night, and released. The boomerang went sailing. The speed and rotation was beautiful. The only problem was that the boomerang went sailing into the forest. The entire group cringed when they heard a thud. And it wasn't a bone hitting wood type of thud either; it was a bone hitting skull type of thud. Everyone watched as a figure made its way out of the woods and into view holding the offending boomerang. It was Koga. He had a huge, red bump on his head where the boomerang had made contact.  
Inuyasha stood up instantly and growled but, for once, Koga didn't beeline for Kagome. He casually walked over to Sango and shoved the boomerang into her hands.  
  
"I believe this is yours slayer, and if it makes contact with my head again I will do more tan just destroy the damn thing..." he said coldly. Sango smiled a bit and nodded.  
  
"I, Koga, am not the one who threw the boomerang at you...the girl who threw it and who just happened to hit you was Kachie over there..." she said, pointing at Kachie, who was trying to hide behind Hekele. Koga glared daggers at both of them.  
  
"I was showing them how to use it and Kachie is apparently catching on to it much quicker than Hekele...she actually hit a demon instead of the dirt..." she finished.  
Koga decided to ignore her and he then walked towards Kagome, which put Inuyasha back on his toes.  
  
"Kagome...my love, how are you?" he asked, trying to avoid Inuyasha. Kagome rolled her eyes and Inuyasha growled again.  
  
"Go away ya mangy wolf...Kagome has already turned you down once this week, AND you've fallen into a hole while making your getaway. Do you want to embarrass yourself more by getting your ass kicked by me?" he snarled. Koga sneered.  
  
"Oh, YOU'RE gonna kick MY ass are you...we'll just see about that..." The two lunged at each other, like always, and mere seconds before they collided Kagome could be heard yelling.  
  
"SIT!!!!!!!!" Like always...  
  
******************************  
  
With the kids:  
  
"Ok, that didn't work...let's try this!!!" Shippo said as he grabbed another stick from the steadily dwindling pile.  
  
"Shippo-chan is going to get fried again...Shippo-chan's tail is already stuck up worse than usual..." Rin said as she shook her head. Shippo glared at his fellow captive and ran at the barrier with the stick in his hand, only to have it bounce back once the barrier came in contact with skin that wasn't touching the stick. It hurt, as usual.  
  
"Waahhhhh!!!!!!!! That hurts!!!" Shippo wailed. Rin rolled her eyes.  
  
"Rin warned Shippo-chan...again..." she said as she gently blew colder air onto the burn for him. Shippo pouted.  
  
"I really thought that it was gonna work though..."  
  
"Shippo-chan tried that four times before, and it didn't work then, so why work now???" Rin questioned, both annoyed and amused at Shippo's antics. Shippo continued to pout.  
  
"Well, if it's so easy Rin, you do it!" he dared. Rin thought for a moment and processed the information that they had gathered since their 'experiments' had begun. Then something clicked. She ran over to the pile and grabbed a stick that had the same length that her arms were when spread out as far as they would go. She then placed the stick onto her shoulders and stretched her arms to their full extent. She then walked up to the barrier and edged through it sideways, so that some of her was touching the stick at all times, and so that the full width of her body was covered by a stick.  
  
She made it.  
  
"Rin did it Shippo-chan!!!" she teased as Shippo scrambled over to the pile of sticks and did the same. Once he was out Rin gave him a smug look, which he tried to ignore. The two walked out of the cave and stared down. They were on a cliff.  
  
Shippo looked at Rin, "Now what smarty?" he asked. Rin just smiled at Shippo, who knew what was about to happen and groaned.  
  
"Shippo-chan can turn into a big pink bubble right??? Get changing!!!" she exclaimed happily. Shippo looked down again and gulped, but another look at the slowly angering Rin told him that he would rather listen to her than not.  
  
***********************  
  
The rest of the group:  
  
Inuyasha was moping in a tree about being 'sat', Kagome was trying to get him down, and Koga was listening to the avid chatter of Kachie and Hekele, whom he had been formerly introduced to by Sango and Miroku, seeing as Kagome was busy... Kagome had turned him down again, and she had also explained their situation with the children, and Sesshoumaru's presence. This part confused Koga a bit, seeing as the demon lord usually wanted Inuyasha dead more than Koga did, but ignored it.  
  
"...So, now that Kagome-sama has turned you down yet again, Koga, what do plan on doing now?" Miroku asked the wolf demon once Hekele and Kachie had quieted down.  
  
"I'm gonna help look for the kids of course! What do think I am? Cold hearted? I am not going to walk away after hearing that they've been kidnapped!!!" he yelled back. Kachie was right next to him and glared at him for yelling, within the next second there was another bump on Koga's head, along with a surprised yelp from the wolf demon.  
  
"What the hell was that for?!?!?!!?" he yelled. Kachie hit him again.  
  
"Both were for yelling in my ear!!! Unlike you demons, we humans aren't accustomed to yelling or being yelled every frickin' word said!" she yelled in return, getting in his face. Koga, being surprised, just shut his mouth and edged away from her. Inuyasha snickered.  
  
"Future girls three, demons from the past zip." Koga chucked a rock at him, knocking him out of the tree.  
  
"What's that suppose to mean, dog-turd?" he questioned. Sango and Miroku were laughing, Kagome was laughing, Inuyasha was snickering, (despite his position on the ground,) and the two other girls from the future were just smiling.  
  
"Oh nothing...I'm just saying that Hekele got the upper hand over Sesshoumaru in an argument twice now and Kachie has just gotten you as well. 'Future girls three, demons from the past zip', get it now ya mangy flea-bitten wolf?" Inuyasha dared. Within two seconds Koga was at his throat and Sesshoumaru was glaring daggers at him. If looks could kill, Inuyasha wouldn't stand a chance. Kagome sighed and sat down next to the fire and Koga abandoned his maiming in order to go 'comfort' her. Inuyasha was about to attack him again when Sango held him back. She shook her head and nodded to where the two were now talking.  
  
"Look, everyone's tired, just let him talk to her; it is obvious that she doesn't care for him as more than a friend. You don't have to worry about losing her to him Inuyasha, believe me." Inuyasha looked around and saw Kachie curled up in a sleeping bag, Miroku was lying under a blanket, Jakken was about to fall into the fire because he was dozing off while so close, and Hekele was resting near Sesshoumaru, who was under the same tree he had been at all evening with his eyes closed, though he wasn't sleeping. Inuyasha relented and nodded his head to Sango, who smiled gratefully. Inuyasha jumped into a tree and lay down, making sure to keep an eye on Koga and Kagome while he was there.  
  
**********************************  
  
With the kids:  
  
Are we almost to the place Shippo-chan smells them at?" Rin asked as she held onto Shippo's hair during their little flight. Shippo grinned.  
  
"Yep!!! And I was right, they were coming after us...they came a long way too!!! They probably stopped for the night around the time that we escaped!!!"  
  
"Rin thinks that we should hurry up! They will be happy that Rin and  
  
Shippo-chan got out all by themselves!!!" Rin said happily. Shippo grinned again.  
  
"I can see them! Hold on Rin!!!"  
  
*****************************  
  
With the rest of the gang:  
  
"What the hell?" Inuyasha asked aloud as he sniffed the air. Kagome and Koga looked up at him oddly before Koga's nose picked up the scent as well.  
  
"You have got to be kidding me..." Koga said to Inuyasha as he recognized the smell.  
  
"What? What do you two smell?" Kagome was becoming frantic, first Inuyasha had left her and Koga alone, and now they were both smelling something out of place and not doing anything. Suddenly Sesshoumaru's eyes bolted open and he leapt forward, nearly scaring the half-asleep Hekele while he was at it. He landed near Inuyasha and Koga as he sniffed the air, just to be sure of what he was smelling.  
  
"...How can this be?" he asked as he gazed at the sky. Inuyasha smiled.  
  
"I don't know, but they are alone...so it isn't a trap," he said. Kagome caught on, so did Hekele as she walked over to the group to figure out why they were all acting fruity.  
  
"Y-you mean the kids? Shippo and Rin? They are on their way? How far off are they???" Kagome started to get that joyous feeling in her stomach as Inuyasha pointed over the treetops. There was the outline of Shippo's pink balloon form with the outline of a little girl on top.  
Hekele smiled with newfound happiness as she ran around the camp waking everyone up. Kachie had proven difficult, what with all the random swinging of arms and all, but eventually she was awake too. Sango and Miroku were exchanging questioning grins and shrugs as Hekele and Kagome started bouncing up and down out of pure joy and relief. Then they saw the oversized bubble heading their way and their jaws dropped. Jakken was leaning on his staff in a vain attempt to stay awake but it proved futile and seconds later he was sleeping again.  
Shippo poofed out of his big form when the two neared the ground and let himself fall into Kagome's loving and protective embrace. Rin barely had time to think before Hekele had her in a bear hug and was swinging her around in joy. After being let down Rin ran to Sesshoumaru and hugged his leg tightly. Even Sesshoumaru couldn't pretend to be cold-hearted in a situation like this. He bent down and lifted Rin into his arms and gave her a hug as well. Rin was surprised that her Sesshoumaru-sama had actually hugged her, but it overjoyed her at the same time. As soon as he had set her down Hekele had Rin in her arms again and was hugging her for dear life.  
Shippo had a welcome quite like Rin's but it affected him more. As soon as Kagome was done squeezing the kitsune Inuyasha had ruffled his hair into a mess and had said:  
  
"It's great to have you back; we were worried about ya."  
  
We. Inuyasha had been referring to himself as well. Shippo had never heard Inuyasha say that he had worried about him. Feeling loved in a whole new way, Shippo jumped onto Inuyasha and hugged him nearly as tightly as he had Kagome. Inuyasha was surprised but he smiled and hugged the kitsune back, causing Kagome to smile as well. Miroku and Sango had their turns to hug Shippo as well, but they wouldn't be for a while; Kagome was holding onto Shippo for dear life once he was no longer hugging Inuyasha, and wasn't letting anyone near him either.  
Kachie and Koga hung back behind the huge group. Koga had never established even a friendship with either of the children, and Kachie hadn't even technically met them yet, so neither felt the right about joining in the festivities. The two looked at each other shyly and both felt a little out of place and embarrassed.  
  
"So...you're a wolf demon?" Kachie asked, deciding to break the ice.  
  
"Yeah...what of it?" Koga asked, a bit taken aback that she had even spoken to him. He inwardly wondered what had prompted that question out of her of all the things she could have said to him.  
  
"Well, wolves are my favorite animals, and I like learning about them," Kachie said, sitting down on a nearby log, "...and since you are a wolf demon, it might be cool to learn about them from you. You can also tell me about wolf demons too! If you want to that is..." Kachie said, looking at Koga with a question in her eyes. Koga, despite his obsession over Kagome, couldn't help but find those eyes of hers very endearing. And Koga couldn't help but be a bit excited that someone wanted to learn about his wolf clan, usually people in this era just screamed when a wolf was seen, even if it wasn't after them, and wanted to kill them. Koga knew that this girl was from Kagome's era, but he still was in awe that someone actually liked learning about wolves.  
  
"Sure I'll teach you about them! No one ever likes to hear about wolves! They think that they are nothing more than killers but they aren't!" Koga was going to like this, Kachie was nodding along with what he was saying and seemed to understand how he felt. This, he could get used to.  
  
*************************  
  
"Will you two be quiet!?!?!?!? We are trying to sleep!" Miroku yelled to Kachie and Koga. It was well after midnight and the two were still talking about wolves. A rock was sent flying into the air and it hit Miroku in the head, sending him into unconsciousness. That would keep him out for a while...  
Kagome held Shippo in her arms as sleep threatened to claim her. Kagome didn't want to fall asleep though; she didn't want to let Shippo out of her sight, even in sleep. Shippo was long asleep, though, his long and tiring day had taken its toll. Inuyasha looked at Kagome and smiled. He gently pulled her into his lap and wrapped his arms around her. Kagome looked up at him, surprised.  
  
"Inuyasha?" she asked. Inuyasha just held her in place.  
  
"Go ahead and sleep Kagome...I won't let anything happen to you and Shippo...you can sleep..." he whispered to her. Kagome nodded and allowed herself to fall asleep in his arms. Inuyasha rocked her a bit and nuzzled her. He laid his head on hers and cautiously watched Koga talk to Kachie; if he was lucky, Koga would be distracted for a while, and he wouldn't have to argue about his current position with Kagome. Besides...it wasn't Inuyasha's fault that Koga was busy talking to Kachie and not paying attention to 'his woman'. Inuyasha clutched Kagome a bit tighter; she was his. Koga could just pack up his tail, (which Kachie was currently admiring,) and go back to his pack. Inuyasha closed his eyes and allowed sleep to claim him. He was going to go through hell in the morning, what with everyone's questions, the perverted monk's questions, and Koga's death threats. Inuyasha didn't care at the moment, though he was happy where he was.  
  
*******************************  
  
Rin was sleeping in Hekele's lap and Hekele was sleeping sitting up under the tree next to Sesshoumaru. Hekele had made it about half an hour after the kids had returned before falling asleep, Rin had made it five.  
  
Sesshoumaru had decided to sit next to them that night; he was a bit on edge about Rin still. Kagura hadn't come after them yet, but that didn't mean that she wouldn't. Naraku had a reason for having her kidnap Rin and Shippo, and if he had a reason, then he would retaliate. Perhaps this was the first part of his plan for Inuyasha's doom. And Rin had been kidnapped as retaliation for Sesshoumaru's lack of participation? Sesshoumaru couldn't be sure.  
Hekele shifted her position a bit, causing her head to slip and land on Sesshoumaru's shoulder. Sesshoumaru stiffened and looked down at her, and found her still sleeping peacefully. His lips curled into a slight smiled and he unwrapped his tail from around his shoulder, gently re- wrapping it around Rin and Hekele's shoulders and arms to keep them warm. Hekele curled into the silky tail and smiled in her sleep. Sesshoumaru felt a bit at peace for a moment before the disturbing thoughts from before entered his mind. Naraku had something evil up his sleeve, and, whatever it was; it was strong as well. Sesshoumaru could sense the impending doom, but the question was; when and where would Naraku's plan be unleashed? Sesshoumaru glanced at Koga, who was still deep in conversation with Kachie. Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes.  
  
*And he claims that the miko is his love...* Sesshoumaru decided to stay awake that night; Koga wouldn't notice a threat if it bit him in the tail. Sesshoumaru allowed himself to be comfortable though, despite his need to stay awake. He glanced at Rin and Hekele again; both were snuggled up in his long, furry, (and yet VERY silky,) tail. They looked so calm and untouchable, almost like two angels resting, waiting for the sun's first rays to re-awaken them for another day in Heaven. Sesshoumaru enjoyed the sight. He smiled again and subconsciously laid his head on Hekele's. He closed his eyes.  
  
*I'm just going to rest my eyes...I'm not going to go to sleep...* he thought to himself. Unfortunately for Sesshoumaru, between the long day's travel and the heavy weighted anxiety of losing the children being lifted, sleep had snaked its way into his body, and he was out before he could even re-think his predicament...  
  
*************************************************************  
  
*Me* So......what does everyone think???  
  
*Lawyers* We think it sucks.  
  
*Me* Huh??? I thought it was good...I love this chappie!!!  
  
*Kachie* I liked the chapter...I got to talk to Koga ALL night! And the kids were smart enough to get out on their own!!!  
  
*Kagome* I loved this chapter too...Inuyasha was soooo sweet...I love him so much!  
  
*Inuyasha* You do? Yay!!! She loves me, she loves me, she loves me, Kagome LOVES ME!!!  
  
*Kagome* *gives Inuyasha a huge hug* Yep!!! I love you!!!  
  
*Koga* I like this chapter too; Kachie is really nice.  
  
*Me* *Watches as Kachie gives Koga a huge hug, causing him to blush* Those two are so cute together.  
  
*Lawyers* God, what are you doing? This fic is so horrible...  
  
*Sesshoumaru* Excuse me?!?!?! This happens to be a really thought- out fic! Leave Hekele alone or else I will be forced to kill you...oh wait...that would be fun!  
  
*Me* *Hugs Sesshoumaru tightly* Thank you Sesshy!!!  
  
*Sesshoumaru* *Hugs Hekele back* You're welcome...Now everyone, R&R if you want an update!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
*Sango* *poofs into fic* In the next chappie the dog boys get to suffer the consequences for their show of emotion...Muahahaha!!! Oh, and Miroku and I tell Hekele, Kachie, and Kagome about Kikyo and Naraku's alliance...when we tell Inuyasha, will he believe us??? So, like Sesshoumaru- sama said, R&R and Hekele-chan will update soon!!! 


	9. Explainations, Adventure, and Stubbornne...

Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Ok, sorry this chappie took so long, but my disk is/was being a mother fcking piece of sht. My computer first refused to acknowledge that there was a disk in the drive. THEN it refused to open ANY of my chapters. This chapter was about half done when all this nonsense occurred. I apologize.  
  
Now, just as a fair warning, because Kachie and I have frequent but stupid arguments, this chapter will contain one between us. It is a really stupid, spontaneous, and out of place argument that ends as quickly as it begins. You will know it when you see it!!! Enjoy the oddity!  
  
This chappie is dedicated to Kachie, who has been trying to tape Inuyasha for me when my mom's cable went caplooie!!! I salute you!!!  
  
Explanations, adventure, and stubbornness  
  
Koga was the first to awake the next morning. He sat up and stretched his arms; his eyes fell on Kachie, who had fallen asleep on her 'sleeping bag' thing. They must have gone to sleep sometime early that morning, but Koga couldn't remember. He couldn't help but smile at the girl, who had so much to learn about wolves.  
  
She knows more about them than any of these other losers though... he thought happily. He glanced around camp, sniffing for anyone else who may be awake, and his eyes fell on Kagome, who was sleeping soundly in Inuyasha's lap with the kit, Shippo, on hers. Koga growled a deep and angry growl.  
  
How dare HE put her into HIS lap with HIS face nuzzled into the crook of her neck...I will slaughter HIM! Koga thought angrily as he stood to make Inuyasha pay for even touching his future mate. Then he stopped to think for a moment. Would it be better to kill him now, with Kagome still in his lap, or should he wait until she was at least awake?  
Koga growled again as he sat down begrudgingly. He would wait; Kagome didn't deserve to have some mutt's blood all over her...  
Another scent reached his nose after a moment of sulking and it's odd combination of aromas caused him to look at its source. There he saw the most interesting sight he hadn't even thought possible; the girl Hekele had the child Rin in her lap and was draped in the Demon Lord Sesshoumaru's long white tail. This part did not puzzle Koga, however, for if his charge, Rin, was cold, then it would only be practical for Sesshoumaru to warm the girls; what puzzled Koga was that Hekele's head was resting on Sesshoumaru's shoulder and that his head was on top of hers.  
  
Are these two together? I did sense a bit of affection betwixt them, but not THIS much...is there something these bozos aren't telling me?!? he thought. Then, as if his prayers were answered, the monk, who always had answers to most anything about ANYONE he was traveling with, stirred across the camp and awoke. Koga grinned from ear to ear.  
Miroku awoke to find that Sango was on the other side of the long dead fire and he made a pouty face...it wasn't like he was going to do anything perverted and rub her ass...much...  
  
"Oi, bozo! Can I talk to-What the hell happened to your nose?!?" Koga asked, laughing as the monk turned to regard him. Miroku made a face and motioned for Koga to join him where he sat, not wanting to wake anyone else at the moment. Koga stifled another laugh as he complied.  
  
"I broke it..." said the monk as Koga sat across from him.  
  
"Let me guess, you groped the slayer again didn't you? Then she hit you with that giant boomerang of hers. Am I right?" Koga jeered. Miroku chose his words carefully.  
  
"Well, something like that...while the girls were bathing I went to go investigate a noise I heard coming from that direction. When I got there, I was looking around in the bushes, hiding myself so that they wouldn't see me and think something obscene. Apparently they heard me and decided to play a trick on me. I fell for it and I was tripped and dunked into the water...I broke my nose when I hit the dirt..."  
  
Koga glared death at the monk and his tail was thrashing dangerously. He knew better than to believe his 'version' on what happened. Miroku had said, 'the girls', which meant that Kagome, HIS Kagome, had been a victim of his perverted ways. The monk saw the impending doom and shrugged it off.  
  
"Oh don't worry, I didn't see anything good, besides that, I had Sesshoumaru on my tail for the rest of the night..." he said passively. Koga stopped thrashing his tail and simply glared at the monk.  
  
"Do tell..." Miroku, again, chose his words carefully.  
  
"When I returned to camp Hekele volunteered to set and tape my nose in place so that it could heal properly. She had me sit down and then she hit my nose rather hard back into place..." Koga winced, that had to hurt.  
  
Miroku continued, "...then she proceeded to tape it in place. I was told to not move a muscle, lest she injure my nose more. I complied and Lord Sesshoumaru seemed rather annoyed..."  
  
"Did she say to stare straight at her breasts or just not move while she taped? I'm sure averting your eyes alone wouldn't have interfered with her bandaging..." Koga muttered, disgusted with the monk. Miroku shrugged.  
  
"I do believe it was the first one..." Miroku said happily. Koga rolled his eyes.  
  
"Despite how utterly disgusting your habits are, I doubt that was enough to perturb Lord Sesshoumaru."  
  
"Well, once Hekele was finished bandaging my nose, my hands just happened to slip and...well, let us just say that Lord Sesshoumaru promptly placed her behind him and threatened my life for my 'indecency'..." Miroku finished. Koga rolled his eyes and suddenly remembered what he was going to ask the monk.  
  
"Are Hekele and Sesshoumaru implied mates or something?" he asked. Miroku looked at him oddly.  
  
"What? I am aware of a slight bit of affection, but NOTHING that deep is between them...why do you ask such a blunt and personal question?" he replied, very curious. Koga grinned and pointed to where the two were resting against the tree together; they hadn't moved an inch.  
Miroku's eyes widened dangerously as his shock mounted a new high every second the two were in his line of vision. He quickly and quietly walked over to where Sango was sleeping and gently tried to shake her awake. No such luck.  
  
"Sango...Sango...wake up..." Miroku grinned pervertedly and Koga turned away, having more dignity than to sink to such a low as to watch the monk go through with his antics.  
Miroku gently took his hand and 'caressed' her 'cheek'. Sango woke up instantly.  
  
"HEN-mmph!!!" Miroku swiftly covered her mouth and held down her flailing arms. Sesshoumaru stirred a bit, but remained content in his deep slumber.  
  
"I promise, I have a REALLY good reason for that...and I DID try to wake you up in a different way but you didn't wake up...anyway, no yelling...I have something strange that was brought to my attention..." he hissed quietly. He turned Sango to face Sesshoumaru and Hekele and he could feel her jaw drop. Sensing that he was out of harm's way for the moment, he cautiously removed her from his captivity.  
  
"Houshi-sama...this is truly odd...touching...but odd...you are temporarily forgiven," she whispered, shocked. Sango climbed up and walked over to Kachie. She kneeled down and shook the girl awake. This time it worked.  
  
Kachie opened her eyes and stretched as Koga had and looked at Sango, "Morning already...damn I'm still tired..." she said as she sat up and yawned. Sango smiled and pointed to where Hekele and Sesshoumaru rested. Kachie's eyes softened and she even smiled. Hekele looked so content sleeping there, and, oddly enough, so did Sesshoumaru. Rin, who was in Hekele's lap, looked so cute all curled up in her Sesshoumaru-sama's tail too. Kachie grabbed her backpack and dug out a small, rounded, square, box. It was a Polaroid camera. She quickly explained the concept of how a camera worked to Sango and quietly walked over to where Sesshoumaru and Hekele were and, after turning off the flash, snapped two pictures of them, knowing that at some point Hekele would want one as well. When the camera started to make noise while producing the photos Kachie jumped back in fear of Sesshoumaru waking up and ending her life. She got lucky, however, and neither he nor Hekele even stirred.  
Kachie did a mini victory dance and silently crept back to Sango. She set the pictures in a patch of sunlight to develop and grinned.  
  
"That is so cute..." she said, looking at the two under the tree. Sango nodded.  
  
"So...how long do you think she'll live once Sesshoumaru wakes up and finds himself in the predicament?" she asked. Kachie shrugged and looked around camp, when her eyes came upon another touching sight...Kagome and Inuyasha. She smiled evilly from ear to ear and nudged Sango. She looked where Kachie was pointing and grinned as well. These two, they could mess with and live. In the midst of their evil planning, they both paused and looked at each other, confused. They then directed their attention to Koga, who gave them a look.  
  
"I decided not to kill him until AFTER my Kagome wakes up..." he said passively. The girls rolled their eyes and Kachie jumped up to take the other couple's picture as well. She used the same technique she used before, except she jumped back quicker this time, knowing that Inuyasha wouldn't have to untangle a giant tail before skinning her alive.  
It worked as it had before and Kachie did yet another victory dance at not being caught. Sango muffled a laugh as she strutted back over to her proudly waving the pictures and all of her attached limbs. Yes, Kachie was a fun one wasn't she? By now the pictures of Hekele and Sesshoumaru were finished developing and Sango's eyes widened at how real they were.  
  
"Wow Kachie...these are amazing..." she said, looking at them again. Kachie smiled and nodded.  
  
"I told ya!" she preached happily. Miroku got curious about the pictures and wanted to see them as well. He stood up and attempted to walk over to where the girls were seated. Unfortunately, the monk didn't have the luck he needed that morning. As he was making his way over to them, he stumbled upon an exposed tree root and fell...flat on his broken nose.  
  
He screamed bloody murder.  
  
Sesshoumaru's eyes shot open and he leapt forward, ready for battle, but, the problem was, Hekele and Rin were still wrapped up in his tail and were yanked upward with him and they landed on top of the poor dog demon, causing him to yelp in surprise and fall forward. The three were tangled up in his tail as Hekele accidentally kneed it into the ground, causing Sesshoumaru to yelp again, this time out of pain.  
Inuyasha and Kagome woke up instantly, but, thankfully, Kagome was able to jump up seconds before Inuyasha, so they didn't end up in the same jumble as their comrades. Shippo was woken by the noise, just as startled as the rest of the group. Jakken remained sound asleep, however, having been so deep in whatever dream the toad demon was dreaming at the time that not even the end of the world could awaken him. How predictable...  
Inuyasha and Kagome froze for a second as the scene before them processed in their minds. As their eyes swept over the group who were blushing, (mostly Hekele, but even the abused Sesshoumaru had a hint of pink in his cheeks, but it was hard to notice,) and desperately trying to untangle themselves from their momentary prison of fur, they busted out laughing. Miroku was still rolling around on the ground holding his nose and whimpering, Koga was laughing his tail off, and Sango and Kachie were laughing nervously, not liking their current predicament one bit. They carefully slid the pictures into one of Kachie's folders and then into her pack.  
Hekele carefully untangled Rin from Sesshoumaru's long tail; Sesshoumaru meanwhile couldn't decide whether to nurse the poor abused thing, kill whoever was laughing, or help Hekele untangle herself. The demon lord resorted to helping Hekele and glaring death at everyone except for Rin. Once Hekele was untangled, the poor girl turned to face Sesshoumaru, blush still creeping on her cheeks.  
  
"Gomen nasai, Sesshoumaru-sama...I'm sorry about your tail..." she said quickly, before turning back around and walking swiftly away on the notion that she was going to bathe in the hot-spring. The demons in the group suddenly stopped laughing when the slight scent of her tears reached their noses. Sesshoumaru growled a bit but kept it quiet for the most part. After a moment or so the rest of the group realized that their friends weren't laughing with them any longer and wondered what was wrong.  
  
"Eh? What's wrong you guys?" Kachie asked them. Shippo was the first to speak.  
  
"I could smell Hekele-chan's tears...we made her cry..." he said sadly, sorry for making his new friend so sad. Kachie's face turned pale and she stood up suddenly, grabbing her pack.  
  
"I'm going to go talk to her...you guys don't realize how easily her feelings get hurt...she used to get teased and laughed at all the time for things she couldn't help...or rumors that weren't even true. I should have thought about that sooner..." she said, walking off in the direction of the hot-spring. Sango and Kagome looked at each other for a moment and followed in a hurry after gathering their necessities. Rin looked up at Sesshoumaru.  
  
"Can Rin go too? Rin wants to make Hekele-chan feel better..." she said to Sesshoumaru, tugging at his sleeve. Sesshoumaru nodded his consent and Rin bounded after the group as quickly as she could. All that were left were the boys, and Sesshoumaru glared death at every one of them again before speaking.  
  
"And what, pre-tell, was so funny about that...predicament?" he asked coldly. Even Inuyasha gulped...before acting like a smart aleck.  
  
"Well, you DID have her wrapped up in your tail..." he said, reeling Sesshoumaru in with a baited hook.  
  
"I was merely trying to keep the girl and my young charge warm."  
  
"Yah, but then you ALSO seemed rather comfortable with her leaning on you and you on her..." Inuyasha continued. Sesshoumaru was one step ahead of him though, and he grinned. Before he had fallen he had seen Inuyasha and the miko together sleeping, and he KNEW just how to use that information to his advantage.  
  
"Ah, comfort is something one seeks in their sleep, mine was a complete accident that must have taken place once we had fallen asleep, but YOU also seemed rather comfortable with the miko quite deliberately in your lap...THAT, I am certain, was no accident..." he said slyly, side glancing at Koga. Koga, like Sesshoumaru, took the bait.  
  
"Yes, dog-turd, I was wondering about that myself..." Sesshoumaru smiled evilly as Inuyasha gulped. This was going to be good...if that damned monk ever stopped whimpering and rolling around holding his nose!  
  
Hekele was already in the hot spring when the rest of the group caught up to her. Kachie bit her lip before undressing and entering as well. The rest of the group followed suit cautiously. Hekele kept her eyes adverted away from them. Everyone was silent for a moment before Kachie spoke.  
  
"Look, Hekele, we are sorry for laughing. And we weren't exactly laughing at you anyway, we were just laughing at the sight of you three all jumbled up...we thought it was kinda cute..." she said. Hekele still didn't look at them. Kagome felt an immense amount of guilt, she had been on of the first to start laughing.  
  
"Hekele, we mean it...we didn't mean to hurt your feelings or anything like that, we were just so surprised and it happened so suddenly that we couldn't help ourselves..." she said. Sango nodded in agreement.  
  
"Rin is sorry if Rin made you cry..." said the little girl. Hekele patted her head affectionately and began to wash it for her.  
  
"I'm not mad at you Rin-chan...you weren't laughing at our momentary misfortune..." she said, a bit of spite in her voice. The group winced and Kachie decided to gamble.  
  
"Ok, I have something that will either make you REALLY happy or REALLY mad...want to see?" she asked Hekele. Hekele shrugged passively. Kachie reached over and opened her pack and took out the folder with the pictures in it. She carefully took out the pictures and handed them to Hekele.  
At first, Hekele's face almost held a smile, but then it turned dark and she glared at her friend.  
  
"How dare you? How dare you just take those pictures like that? What were you going to use them for?!" she yelled. Kachie glared back at her.  
  
"One, I thought you three looked cute like that and I wanted to keep the once in a lifetime, (or two,) memory intact. Two, I took the second one for you in case you wanted one! Three, don't you always do stuff like that to me and our other friends?!?"  
  
"Well, maybe I do, but when I do so it is when you go on actual dates! I don't imply things that aren't true! What you see in the picture was an accident and here you act as though it were this huge scandal or something! Besides, at least you KNOW when I am taking pictures!" she retorted.  
  
"Well, what do YOU use those pictures for?!? Huh? Tell me that!!!" Kachie shouted back. Kagome and Sango looked at each other warily; this wasn't going so well.  
Hekele got out of the hot spring and got dressed. Once she did that she dug into her bag and pulled out three small photo albums and threw them at the edge near Kachie and stalked off, angry and hurt.  
Kachie glared at her friend again and opened one of the albums. In it were pictures of Kachie and some of her other friends. There were also the alleged 'date pictures', pictures from when they had gone to camp together when they were younger, pictures from school, and even from birthdays and holidays. Kachie's jaw dropped as she read some of the inserts and she realized that what she was looking at was a mini scrapbook about her. She quickly dug through the other two and found pictures of Hekele's mom in one and of another of their friends in another. They were memory books, each devoted to a single person. Kachie rolled her eyes.  
  
"Now, if I had KNOWN that this is what she was up to all those times, I wouldn't have snapped. She always stuff like this without telling me, she's so mysterious that it gets in the way of common sense. Perfect, now we are arguing again..."  
  
"You two argue often?" Sango asked, feeling guilty. Kachie nodded.  
  
"All the time, but we always are friends again by the end of the day..." she said.  
  
"Are you sure? She seemed pretty mad..." Kagome pointed out. Kachie nodded.  
  
"Now that I think about it, the only reason she was probably mad about the pictures was because everyone had laughed at her...she probably saw it as something we were going to use against her...I should really think before I act huh?"  
  
"Maybe that would be wise...does she hate us all now?" Sango asked, completely serious.  
  
"Nope, she just needs to cool off, then I'm gonna apologize a hole in her heart and we'll be friends again..." Kachie said confidently. Rin looked at her oddly.  
  
"What happens when Hekele-chan makes Kachie-san mad?" she asked. Kachie smiled.  
  
"Then the same thing happens, only vice versa."  
  
"Kind of like with Inuyasha and Kagome? Except Inuyasha never says sorry, Kagome says it for him..." Sango said, rolling her eyes. Kagome blushed and Kachie grinned.  
  
"Hey Kags...I got something for you..." Kachie took out the photos of Kagome and Inuyasha and handed them to her. Kagome blushed a hundred shades of red and glared at Kachie.  
  
"Ye ARE evil...know ye no shame?" she asked, much like Kaede would. Sango laughed and Kachie just gave them confused looks.  
  
"Sango was my partner in crime...but she didn't take any pictures...she just knew about them..."  
  
Kagome looked at Sango and shook her head, "Can I see the pictures of Hekele and Sesshoumaru? I never got to see the two sleeping..." Kachie gladly complied and showed them off. Kagome didn't hide her shock.  
  
"Oh my god...how cute! Even Sesshoumaru seems happy in this picture...too bad he's sleeping..." Kachie shuddered.  
  
"If Sesshoumaru was awake then I'd be in a permanent slumber...and I wouldn't be breathing either..." The other three girls laughed.  
  
"Well, shall we try once more to console Hekele?" Sango asked. Kachie nodded.  
  
"I bet you anything she's already forgiven me...that's just how our stupid little fights work."  
  
"Ok, Rin is getting out now, Rin wants to see Hekele-chan," said the little girl as she climbed out of the spring and got dressed. The other girls nodded and dressed as well. Then they all walked towards camp, where they had seen Hekele head.  
  
Hekele stomped back into camp without so much as a 'hello'. Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha, Koga, and Shippo looked at each other for a moment in confusion. First she was sad, then she was angry, and it didn't make sense. They looked back down at their little 'project' and sighed; Miroku was just too much a hassle.  
They had been trying to figure out what was wrong with him for about ten minutes now, he was still rolling around holding his nose and whimpering. They couldn't get him to stop long enough to find out what had happened to his nose. Sighing in a defeated tone, Sesshoumaru called to Hekele.  
  
"I am sorry to disturb your thoughts, but the monk hasn't stopped carrying on yet and is causing quite a head ache for everyone, would you mind assisting us?" Hekele looked at Sesshoumaru for a moment and complied. Sesshoumaru could smell her annoyance and slowly dissipating anger and took a step back, not wanting to be yelled at or to be made deaf like the last time she was so annoyed.  
Hekele kneeled down and turned Miroku onto his back. She gently slapped his hands away from his nose and unbandaged it. She groaned and rolled her eyes at him.  
  
"You idiot, you've broken it in another place! Now I have to re-set it! Sit up so we can get this over with." she ordered, pulling him into a sitting position. Miroku's tear-stained eyes got wide and he attempted to back away from Hekele. Inuyasha grabbed him by his robes and held him still. Hekele nodded him a small thanks.  
  
"Miroku, this time, you know what it will feel like and that I'm not TRYING to hurt you. Now stay still and don't move a muscle...STOP LOOKING AT MY BREASTS!" she yelled, slapping the side of his face, being mindful of his nose.  
  
Sesshoumaru growled and grabbed the other side of the monk's robes, "Monk, we are all getting VERY tired of your antics; she is trying to assist you! Now is not the time for your 'hobby'. Stop acting like a new- born whelp as well, Rin has more endurance than you!" Hekele nodded him a thanks as well. Miroku averted his eyes...for the moment.  
  
"Now, Miroku, this is going to hurt a bit more than last time, so don't blame me ok?" Hekele said as she put her hands into position. Miroku nodded, subconsciously holding his breath. Hekele swiftly hit his nose into position and, despite his loud scream, held it there for a moment to make sure that it wouldn't be knocked out again by the his thrashing. She then quietly but swiftly rebandaged his nose.  
When she was finished she stood up, took her roll of medical tape, and walked back to her backpack, without so much as a word. It wasn't that she was still angry with her friends, but she was still uncomfortable around them and that made her wish to isolate herself for a bit. She watched as Kachie, Kagome, Sango, and Rin walked into camp. She turned on her cd player and began to listen to her favorite mix of songs, hoping that her friends would get the message and leave her alone for an hour or so. Rin wasn't so perceptive.  
  
"What's Hekele-chan listening to?" she asked, crawling into the girl's lap. Hekele couldn't help but smile at Rin; she was just too cute to ignore.  
  
"I'm listening to a bunch of different types of songs right now. Here, this one is ok for you to listen to..." she said, turning down the volume a bit and placing the headphones on Rin's head. The girl listened to the song contently, curling up in Hekele's lap. Hekele stroked her hair gently, humming the song to herself; it was "Concrete Angel" by Martina McBride. It was a sad song, but a good one. When it was finished, Rin gave Hekele the headphones.  
  
"Rin wishes that she could visit Hekele-chan in her time and explore there; everything seems like it would be different..." she said in a dreamy tone. Hekele raised an eyebrow and glanced at Sesshoumaru, (who was sitting on the other side of camp by the fire,) knowing that his superior hearing had caught the remark made by his young charge. He met her gaze for a moment and then looked at Rin, as if thinking such an excursion over in his head. Hekele squeezed Rin tenderly.  
  
"Perhaps you can sometime, it depends on a few things though. Like if Kagome, Kachie, and I have school or not, if Ms. Hirageshi is ok with having a FOURTH girl around the house, and if Sesshoumaru thinks you're old enough to go. Having his permission is the main thing though, since you're so young..." she said trailing off a bit, looking to Sesshoumaru for approval of her words and received a slight nod that only she noticed. She smiled and returned her eyes to Rin.  
  
"Rin thinks that is a good idea; Sesshoumaru-sama is very protective..." she said. Hekele looked at Sesshoumaru and smiled in return to his own small smile. Having her bad mood extinguished, Hekele turned off the CD player, picked up Rin, and walked over to the fire, where breakfast was beginning to cook. She sat down and replaced Rin in her lap. Sesshoumaru glanced at his charge before speaking to Hekele.  
  
"You do realize that you're spoiling her don't you?" he asked, amusement in his voice. Hekele grinned at him.  
  
"And you don't? Besides, as long as I don't spoil her rotten what's wrong with it?" she retorted. Sesshoumaru nodded slightly.  
  
"You honestly think that if you keep this up that she will not be?" he asked, eyebrow raised. Hekele smiled.  
  
"As long as I give her what she will appreciate but does not ask for she won't..." she said. Sesshoumaru smiled slightly at this and glanced around camp. Inuyasha was arguing with Koga, Kagome was trying to break them up, Sango was speaking to Miroku, Shippo and Kachie were digging through Kachie's backpack for chocolate, and Jakken was still sleeping. Sesshoumaru furrowed his eyebrows at this and wondered what could have made the toad demon THAT tired. Hekele saw where Sesshoumaru was looking and she grinned.  
  
"Can I wake him up? Please???" she begged. Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes and nodded. Rin smiled evilly, (which startled Sesshoumaru a bit,) and got out of Hekele's lap. Hekele stood up and crept over to Jakken quietly. By this time the whole group of travelers was watching Hekele intently, waiting to see what she would do. Hekele first poked Jakken to see what would happen. Nothing did. Then Hekele sighed and whispered to the group.  
  
"Should I show him mercy?" The group shook their heads and Inuyasha swore he saw Hekele grow horns. Hekele gently rolled Jakken onto the towel she had used to dry off with at the hot spring and picked the bundle up. She motioned for the group to follow her as she walked back towards the spring. The group complied and when they got there, watched as Hekele rolled her blanket out next to the edge and shoved the sleeping Jakken into the water. He was awake almost before he hit the hot water.  
  
"YEEEAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
Hekele smiled triumphantly as the group busted out laughing. Jakken crawled out of the hot spring quickly.  
  
"What was that for?!? Why do you allow them to torment me so M'lord?" he asked Sesshoumaru in a whiny tone. Sesshoumaru just looked at him.  
  
"You were the one who thought it safe to sleep in so late, do you honestly think that I could have stopped her had I wished to?" he asked. Jakken whined and Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes. The large group shook their heads and started heading back to camp. Miroku and Sango motioned to Sesshoumaru to stay behind. He, having an idea as to why, complied. This had to be about the dead miko. Once the rest of the group was gone, Sango spoke.  
  
"We should inform Kagome, Hekele, and Kachie about Naraku and Kikyo's alliance..." she said. Miroku nodded.  
  
Sesshoumaru thought for a moment, "Would we not also have to inform my half brother of the dead miko's treachery?"  
  
Miroku sighed, "...Yes...but the problem is whether or not he would believe us, he is still in love with her after all."  
  
"And he still refuses to believe that Kikyo is no longer who she used to be, but a mere shadow of undying hate in a body of ashes and earth..." Sango said sadly. Sesshoumaru pondered over the information.  
  
"Would he believe it if perhaps Kagome told him?" he asked, still thinking. Sango and Miroku shook their heads.  
  
"If anything, that would enrage him more; Kagome and Kikyo are perhaps equal in his heart, and if one were to put down another he would...well..." Miroku searched for a way to explain Inuyasha's reaction.  
  
"He would reject the notion and believe the other was the traitor?" Sesshoumaru suggested. Sango and Miroku nodded.  
  
"Nothing we would say could make him believe that Kikyo had betrayed him," Sango stated. It was Sesshoumaru's turn to nod.  
  
"And what about the wolf prince? Will we inform him as well?" he asked. Sango nodded.  
  
"When Naraku strikes, we'll need all the help we can get. But we must inform them in separate, Inuyasha would get suspicious if they were all called away at once...how would we do this?" she asked. Suddenly, Sesshoumaru got an idea.  
  
"Rin has voiced and interest to travel to the future with Kagome, Kachie, and Hekele at some point, would you care to join them? Koga and I could search for possible shard whereabouts..." he said slyly. Sango smiled and nodded.  
  
"That is a good idea Sesshoumaru-sama, I will voice the possibility to the other girls..."  
  
"Sango, this is no time to take a vacation! We have a situation to deal with!" Miroku interjected, bewildered at Sango and Sesshoumaru's lack of concentration. Sango rolled her eyes.  
  
"Houshi-sama, you have no mind that deals with less than your perverted thoughts..." she said.  
  
"Go and inform the others of our idea, and if Inuyasha complains about everyone leaving, find a way to get the wolf prince on his back, I am certain he will forget about your plans for departure for a time..." Sesshoumaru said. Sango nodded and trod back to camp. Sesshoumaru looked at the monk.  
  
"You are utterly hopeless," he said before walking off after Sango. Miroku looked at the demon for a moment before following.  
  
"Was it something I said?"  
  
"Are you still mad at me?" Kachie asked Hekele as they began to eat breakfast. Hekele shook her head.  
  
"Nope, and I'm sorry for being such a bitch...I just..."  
  
"Felt threatened? We've been friends for forever, I should have known better than to laugh and show you those pictures right then..."  
  
"Speaking of those pictures...do you think I could have one?" Hekele asked, while blushing. Kachie grinned from ear to ear.  
  
"Of course...I KNEW you would want one..." she said slyly, opening her pack and retrieving one of the pictures for Hekele.  
Hekele examined it carefully, taking in everything about it, and smiled. Hekele knew just what she was going to do with the photo when she returned home...she was going to put it on the computer and make a smaller version to put into her locket, (which was back in hers and Kagome's room.). She already had a picture of her mother in one side, and Hekele thought that this would go nicely in the other.  
  
"Thanks...I guess..." Hekele said, eyeing her friend evilly. Kachie gulped and went back to her food. Rin smiled.  
  
"Rin is happy that Hekele-chan is happy again," she said happily. Hekele gave her a little hug and Kagome rolled her eyes. Hekele was acting like Rin was her little sister, or daughter even.  
  
But, then again, I am the same way with Shippo... she said looking as the kitsune pounced into her lap and tried to go back to sleep.  
Kachie had returned her attention to Koga and the two were talking about wolves...AGAIN. Koga was getting more and more animated as they spoke, and Kagome wondered if perhaps he was beginning to LIKE Kachie a little bit.  
  
I hope so...If he does then I can rest in peace knowing that he won't try to kidnap me in my sleep and make me his mate... she thought happily, loving the possibility. She watched as the two started laughing, and there wasn't a doubt in her mind that there was SOME sort of non-friendship connection.  
  
"Nice sight isn't it...he's not bothering YOU..." Came Inuyasha's voice from behind her. Kagome smiled as he sat next to her and nodded.  
  
"Don't jinx it...I'm not home free yet..." she said. Inuyasha cocked an eyebrow.  
  
"What's a...jinx?" he asked, confused by the new word. Kagome smiled.  
  
"It means to cause someone bad luck, so when I say, don't jinx it..."  
  
"...You mean not to make the opposite happen?" Inuyasha said, thinking ahead. Kagome nodded.  
  
"But why would I jinx it? I don't want him to keep bothering you either..." Inuyasha said, looking hurt. Kagome leaned on him and smiled again.  
  
"It's a common superstition in my time that if someone hopes for something big to happen, that if they say it WILL happen, it won't. So I am saying to you, NOT to say that he WILL leave me alone...I don't mean that you want to jinx me..." she said. Inuyasha nodded and laid his head on hers, subconsciously wrapping his arms around her. Kagome closed her eyes and smiled. This is what she wanted...for her and Inuyasha to be like this always, and maybe...  
  
Don't jinx it Kagome...  
  
Sango walked out of the forest and smiled at what she saw, Inuyasha and Kagome holding each other, with Shippo in Kagome's lap, Kachie talking to a happy Koga, and Hekele and Rin talking with Rin climbing into Hekele's lap. It was a sweet sight...too bad she had to break it up.  
  
"Hekele, Kachie, Kagome? May I speak with you for a moment?" she asked sweetly, making everyone jump, they hadn't noticed her walk up. Inuyasha and Kagome blushed like mad and quickly separated before Koga could see them. Sango gave Kagome an apologetic look and beckoned the three girls to follow her. They did so warily as Sesshoumaru, Miroku, and Jakken showed up into the camp and sat down by the fire to breakfast; Jakken was still complaining. Sango gave them a slight, almost undetectable nod, and led the girls into the forest. Inuyasha, when no one was looking, leapt into the trees to follow them. Sesshoumaru, having been glancing at the hanyou out of the corner of his eye while eating, grinned.  
  
And to think the slayer planned this little plot so quickly...  
  
"So Sango...what's this about?" Kagome asked. Sango grimaced a bit.  
  
"Well...there's something important that I want to tell you three, but because of prying ears I do not know how safe it is to talk here, INUYASHA!!!" she yelled that last part, surprising the hanyou in the tree behind Kagome into falling to the ground. Sango had noticed him right away; of course, she had counted on this also. She and Kagome leered at him while Hekele and Kachie snickered.  
  
"Inuyasha! What's the big idea?!?!" Kagome yelled at him. Inuyasha growled.  
  
"Well! Why can't I hear?! Are you all talking about me or something?!?!" he yelled back, Sango had to fight a grin.  
  
Sorry Inuyasha and Kagome...but what works, works... she thought.  
  
"Inuyasha!!! You don't know anything do you?! What if this was personal! I don't know what it's about yet, YOU INTERRUPTED!!!" Kagome yelled. Inuyasha seethed.  
  
"Why does it have to be private?!?!"  
  
"Why are you asking me?!?!"  
  
"ALL I WANTED TO DO WAS TALK TO MY FRIENDS WITHOUT BEING BOTHERED!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Sango yelled, inside she was grinning evilly but none of that reflected on the outside, only mock anger, but the other people standing near her didn't know that...  
  
"So what now? I'm not your friend?!?!?!?!" Inuyasha yelled back. Kagome twitched an eyebrow and everyone except Inuyasha, who was facing away from her, jumped back quickly.  
  
"Sit. I'm going home, Hekele, Kachie; Sango, you're coming too. Sango, don't argue; you're coming like it or not. Maybe in my time we can TALK without being interrupted, and then we'll STAY for a few days for a break. We deserve it!!!" she said mockingly at Inuyasha as he went plummeting to the ground.  
  
"Can I bring Rin?" Hekele asked. Kagome rolled her eyes.  
  
"If Sesshoumaru says she can come..."  
Inuyasha growled something fierce and let out a long string of curses that Hekele and Kagome were glad that the children couldn't hear.  
  
Kagome happily rode on Inuyasha's back as they approached Kaede's village. At first, the hanyou had protested but Kagome had, in a sense, forced him into giving her a ride.  
  
"The sooner we go the sooner we'll come back..." she had said quite slyly to her companion, and he had fallen for it. Koga, so that he could talk to Kachie and still walk at a normal pace, (for him anyway,) had pulled Kachie onto his back so they could speed around as the others walked. Kachie was quite pleased about this, as were Inuyasha and Kagome. Sango, Miroku, and Shippo rode on Kirara's back while Hekele walked next to Sesshoumaru with Rin, (who was very enthusiastic about her trip thru time,) on her back. Jakken was jogging behind the group to keep up.  
Kachie and Koga sped ahead as they saw the village come into view. The trip had gone by much faster than it had when they were looking for the children, partially because they all had rides, (Hekele and Rin had also ridden on Kirara for the majority of the trip,) and partially because they weren't so stressed. Only once or twice did anyone question why it had been so simple to reclaim the children. Did Kagura not care? Did she not think them capable of escape? No one was sure, but no one dwelled on it for long either.  
  
"Hekele-chan, how long will Rin be in the future with everyone?" Rin asked cutely. Hekele smiled.  
  
"Perhaps a few days...not too long..."  
  
"What are we going to do while we're there?" she asked.  
  
"Well, maybe we can take you shopping, get your hair done, among other things, and maybe spoil you a bit..." Hekele said, glancing at Sesshoumaru, who tried unsuccessfully to hide his smirk. No one in the group failed to notice these little exchanges of wits and puns between the two. They all found it quite amusing that Sesshoumaru not only endured them, but provoked them once in a while, as if he were enjoying it a bit.  
  
"If you insist on spoiling her then make sure not to return to me a girl that which I cannot recognize..." he said. Hekele grinned.  
  
"Oh, so you wouldn't know Rin if she were a bit different? You could not recognize her if she weren't so plainly in front of you?" she tested; Sesshoumaru returned the wit.  
  
"I could know Rin anywhere; her scent is unique and I could never forget it. But you, my friend, do not have such a gifted nose...could you recognize her if she were to disappear for a few days and come back a different girl?" he asked slyly. Hekele merely nodded.  
  
"Rin's looks could change a thousand times and still she would be the little girl on my back now...I would know her anywhere..."  
Rin was smiling brightly with all the attention that her two favorite adult figures were unwittingly giving her. She loved how they proclaimed they would always know her, even though she could tell that they were teasing each other. She also liked the teasing, it meant that they were getting close, and Rin enjoyed how happy the two seemed while undisturbed together.  
  
Rin doesn't need to try to make them like each other...they already do... the young yet somewhat wise girl thought.  
The group walked through the village nonchalantly. As if nothing was out of the ordinary with the odd bunch of travelers, the villagers they passed would wave and bid them greetings. When they reached Kaede's hut they found Koga and Kachie patiently waiting for them.  
  
"What took you so long slow pokes?" Koga asked. Well, at least Kachie was patient.  
They all filed into the old woman's hut and Kachie was formerly introduced to her.  
  
"I see the unexpected reinforcements from Kagome's time are multiplying...be there any more surprises?" she said jokingly. Kachie blushed a bit and the group shook their heads. Kachie and Koga got into yet another discussion while Kaede was informed that all of the girl's, including Rin, were going to be going to the future for a few days. She quirked an eyebrow at Sesshoumaru when she heard this but said nothing. Obviously the demon lord was becoming more trusting of his new acquaintances, and that was good.  
  
"How long will ye be gone for?" she asked. Suddenly something clicked in Koga's head. No one had told him that they were leaving...all that had been mentioned to him was that they were returning to the village.  
  
"You're leaving?!?!?! You can't leave now!!! I wanna take you to see the rest of my clan!" he said pleadingly to Kachie. Kachie blushed a bit at this.  
  
"Well...you should have told me that before I made plans with them."  
  
"But you never said that you were leaving!"  
  
"Sorry, I thought at least someone would have mentioned it."  
  
"But no one did, so will you stay?"  
  
"No...there will be plenty of time for me to see your clan...they aren't going anywhere..." Koga growled a bit and left the hut, leaving a stunned group and a blushing Kachie.  
  
"Ye wolf prince may have hurt feelings? I sense he has a bit of a crush on Kachie..." Kaede said suspiciously, but with a smile. Kachie blushed a bit more and Inuyasha spoke, changing the subject.  
  
"I think that they should skip the whole trip idea and come shard hunting...THAT'S more important anyway..." Kagome just looked at him.  
  
"Sit."  
  
"I said you're not going!"  
  
"And I said we ARE going, now let me through Inuyasha!"  
  
"No!"  
  
"Yes!"  
  
"No!"  
  
"Hekele!!!" Kagome yelled. Hekele calmly walked over to her friend. They were now at the well and Inuyasha was being a jerk about it. Sesshoumaru, Rin, Miroku, Shippo, Sango, Kirara, and Kachie were standing there waiting for the argument to be done with so the girls could just leave. Koga was nowhere in sight.  
  
"Yes, Kagome?" Hekele answered sweetly. Kagome grinned.  
  
"Get the sticky stuff." Hekele opened her backpack and took out the duck-tape, whose code-name was 'sticky stuff'. She handed the duck tape to Kagome who threatened Inuyasha with it.  
  
"If you don't let me through...I swear...I WILL use this!" she said. Inuyasha 'feh'ed' and leaned on a tree, which was just what Kagome was waiting for.  
  
"SIT!!!" CRASH!!! Inuyasha 'fell' through the trunk, causing the tree to fall over, Inuyasha on top of it. While the subdueing spell held him she quickly wrapped him up in the duck tape, tying him to the tree. As a last ditch effort she duck taped his mouth shut as well. When she turned to regard her friends, Miroku had disappeared out of fear. Suddenly, as the group was about to jump into the well, (each with their own shard of the jewel,) Koga jumped out of the bushes with a small bouquet of flowers and held them out to Kachie while blushing.  
  
"Do you really gotta go? I still wanna show you my clan...they're a cool bunch..." he said hopefully. Kachie smiled and accepted the flowers.  
  
"It'll only be for a few days...I haven't even had the chance to explore modern Japan yet...I just got to the country two days ago, and then yesterday morning I ended up coming here...I think I'm entitled to a little exploring..." she said. She watched as Koga's elf-like ears drooped a little and bit her lip.  
Kagome and the tied up Inuyasha were in a state of shock that was matched by no other. Koga was over Kagome!!! It was a dream come true for the two. Although, Kagome WAS getting a bit jealous; she couldn't help but feel a bit offended that Koga had gotten over her so easily.  
  
And he never brought ME flowers either...apparently he didn't LOVE me as much as he thought he did... Kagome thought, but she thought it with a slight smile.  
Kachie thought for a moment and, standing on her tip-toes, gave Koga a small peck on the cheek, earning a huge blush from the wolf demon.  
  
"Thanks for the flowers...and I PROMISE that I'll be back in a few days, ok?" she asked as blush at what she had just done graced her cheeks. Koga just nodded a bit and stepped out of her path to the well. She nodded him a thanks and swiftly jumped through the well, avoiding the teasing she knew she would receive for at least a few more minutes.  
  
Sango jumped in next, a bit sad that Miroku hadn't stuck around and bid her farewell. Hekele and Rin gave Shippo a good-bye hug and Rin gave Sesshoumaru one as well. Hekele was more than a little surprised when Sesshoumaru out stretched his arm and gave her an embrace as well. It was a very small embrace, one that a person would even wonder if it should be called a hug, but for Sesshoumaru, such a movement spoke volumes. Hekele blushed like mad but smiled in return.  
  
"Umm, bye Sesshoumaru..." she said before jumping into the well with Rin. Sesshoumaru glared at Kagome and Inuyasha, whose jaws were as wide as they could get, (given Inuyasha's duck tape problem.)  
  
"And what do you find so amusing?" he asked coldly. Kagome just shook her head and bid the tied up Inuyasha, who was struggling against his bindings, farewell and jumped into the well. Moments later Inuyasha was able to free himself, but when he jumped into the well to argue with Kagome some more, he landed square on his nose. Kagome had sealed the well so that he couldn't bother them while they were there. Sesshoumaru, Koga, and Shippo peaked over the edge and looked at the hanyou lying flat at the bottom of the well holding his nose in pain and Sesshoumaru grinned evilly.  
  
"Woman troubles?" Inuyasha growled as the three above him snickered.  
  
He was gonna get even for this...  
  
Naraku sat with Kikyo in his palace as they watched the events that occurred through Kanna's mirror. They saw as the girls jumped one by one through the well, and Naraku couldn't help but watch Kikyo's eyes widen when she saw Sesshoumaru not only there, but hugging one of the Kagome's friends.  
  
"Is this what you wished to show me?" she asked Naraku coldly. Naraku nodded slightly.  
  
"This and I wanted to discuss our plan. Sesshoumaru has told the monk and the slayer about our alliance, and the reason the females are returning through time is so that the slayer can tell them in private. Sesshoumaru intends to tell the wolf demon as well..."  
  
"What about Inuyasha? Will no one warn him?" Kikyo asked, suspicious.  
  
"Yes, your reincarnation will most likely be the one to do the deed, but the rest shall be present when she does. The reason I called you here is to tell you that if our plan is to work that we must make haste, or our window of opportunity will close."  
  
"What is your will?"  
  
"We must take the women and child before they breathe a word. But we will let them have their fun first...I need time to manifest the dimensions."  
  
"Dimensions?"  
  
"Yes, if we are to test their will and love, then they must be separate. My dimensions created with the power of the Shikon no Tama shards will make it so that they cannot leave unless they pass our 'tests'..."  
  
Kikyo rolled her eyes, "Why must we test their love for each other, some of the relationships haven't even budded yet any how..."  
  
Naraku grinned, "Ahh, but they have budded enough. And as for why: have you ever seen the faces of sadness created by betrayal? They are so delicious. And the looks on the faces of the person who did the betraying are just as good when they have to make a choice between loved ones...the hurt and pain will make their death easier for us to grant."  
  
Kikyo smiled, "Shall we put another piece on the board? Perhaps the slayer's brother will make an appearance should any of them pass your tests..." Naraku nodded.  
  
"Go and collect your wits, give Inuyasha your 'love' and comfort him for your reincarnation's departure. Such a recent bond between you shall make everything easier, should some one tell him about our plot sooner than we expect," he said placing a tender, yet possessive kiss on Kikyo's forehead. Kikyo glared at him for the unwanted gesture, bowed, and vanished. Naraku paused for a moment.  
  
"Kagura, you will also play a role in this, you will assist me in one of these tests..."  
  
The wind witch in the shadows behind her lord shook her head, "I will not. If you insist on toying with their emotions like dolls then I will not help you. Kanna has told me that it will not work, and so I tell you. Neither of us will help you, we would rather perish."  
  
Naraku turned to regard her, "You will or you shall suffer, and Kanna will as well. I see how you let the children escape so easily, and you WILL be punished..." Naraku formed the shape of Kagura's heart in his hand and squeezed it, causing the girl to fall to the floor in pain. Naraku dismissed her and when she could stand again she left.  
  
Oh, I'll help you Naraku...into HELL!  
  
Me- So what does everyone think of this one?  
  
Koga- I got a kiss, I got a kiss, I got a kiss! Woo-hoo!  
  
Kachie- sweat drops It was just a kiss on the cheek...  
  
Koga- but no one's ever done that before! grabs Kachie and gives her a kiss on the cheek  
  
Kachie- blushes Umm, thanks Koga...  
  
Me- rolls eyes Well, they liked it, anyone else?  
  
Sesshy- I loved it, but you really must stop spoiling Rin...  
  
Me- but that's the fun of playing mommy, I gotta spoil her!!!  
  
Sesshy- Well, ok, but be careful with sugar...  
  
Me- No pro- Rin bounces into the room and jumps on Hekele's back and starts giggling. She then proceeds to jump off and leap into Sesshoumaru's awaiting arms as he tries to calm her -blem...  
  
Rin- Thanks for that coffee stuff!  
  
Me- but I didn't give you coffee...INUYASHA!!!!!!!  
  
Inuyasha- walks out of kitchen with a bag of sugar, followed by Kagome, Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and Kirara What?  
  
Me- Did you give Rin coffee?  
  
Inuyasha- Nope, but the new guy working in the kitchen is really nice, he gave us all this sugar...  
  
Me- gets suspicious and walks into the kitchen where the new cook is making everything with lots of sugar Excuse me, but who said you could give all these guys sugar?  
  
Cook- Lifts his hat and cloak off to reveal my guinea pig, Tai sitting on Buyo's head No one, we just wanted to...  
  
Me- faints because my guinea pig and Buyo just talked  
  
Sesshy- puts Rin down and runs over to me and tries to wake me up Hekele, are you ok? Answer me!  
  
Kagome- Umm, I think she's out cold...  
  
Sesshy- growls at Kagome and gives me a small kiss on the forehead as I lay unconscious in his arms  
  
Me- wakes up and smiles Awwe, aren't you sweet?  
  
Sesshy- growls when he notices everyone looking at him and grinning evilly You just wanted a kiss...  
  
Me- Yup, and I got one... Gives Sesshy a kiss on the cheek There, now we're even!  
  
Sesshy- blushes and growls softly  
  
Shippo- Ok, I'm getting sick of all the lovey-dovey shit, R&R and Hekele will update soon...if we ever get her away from Sesshoumaru...damn teenage girl...  
  
Kagome- Shippo! Where did you learn that language?!  
  
Shippo- points at Inuyasha eating sugar  
  
Kagome- Oh Inuyasha...  
  
Inuyasha- looks up hmm?  
  
Kagome- SIT!!!!!!! 


	10. Adventures in the Future and the New Moo...

> > Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Me- Ok, I got a review that depressed me for a while before I updated. Kenshinlover45 (whom is probably reading this,) said that what Kagome did to Inuyasha at the end of the chapter with the duck tape was too mean and OOC and that, (I think...can't find the review right now,) my other characters were also OOC and that I could do better and that she was disappointed in the chappie.  
  
Kachie- This upset Hekele quite a bit, because she had so many computer troubles and all she wanted to do was update for her loyal readers. Also, she has NEVER been put down in a review before, so it took her a while to realize that this wasn't an insult, even so, it really hurt her feelings.  
  
Me- nods Now, I do NOT want anyone badmouthing Kenshinlover45 or anything, cuz like Kachie said, it wasn't meant to hurt my feelings, it just did. As for Kagome's duck tape moment, it wasn't too bad. Kagome has never had duck tape around Inuyasha before so we aren't sure how exactly she would act, this is what I THINK could happen. Plus, she was really annoyed with him. I also realize, after reading my chapter over a few times, that Sango seemed rather malicious closer to the end. This, I know, is REALLY out of character, but as I was finishing the chapter I was getting rather impatient because I wanted to get a certain amount of information into it and I didn't know how to deliver. As I wrote the chapter it seemed funny BECAUSE it wasn't like her, so if it made anyone mad, sorry. And last but not least, Koga and Kachie. Now, I am not going to say much about these two, other than when you finally meet Mr. or Miss Perfect, nothing can stand in love's way. As we all know, love at first sight isn't impossible, so why should a quick, strong bond that is turning into love, be impossible? Koga realized without knowing it how attracted he felt towards Kachie. His overly huge crush on Kagome diminished because it WASN'T that strong, plus, Kachie feels the same way back, and that can only intensify a loving emotion.  
Oh, and I have a KILLER idea for the rest of the story, as I said before, I know what I want to do now, and my idea gets more and more clear everyday. If you feel that I am rushing the emotions of some of the characters, but as you read in the last chapter, their love for each other is going to be tested. How can love be tested if it isn't there??? Which is why I may be rushing things a bit...sorry. And OOC isn't that bad a thing, I have no objections to OOCness, considering all the AU fan-fics I read, I can't have an objection. Please, like Kachie needed to think about why we had our argument in the last chapter, think about what you write in your reviews, I get hurt feelings easily, and it takes me a while to get over stupid stuff. If you have a problem with certain parts, don't leave me to wonder what I did wrong, tell me WHY you hate the OOCness or event, and give a suggestion that would easily give me the same result in events.  
  
Kenshinlover45, thanks for the review, I am sorry if this offended you, but I decided to kill two birds with one stone and talk to both you and my other readers and explain stuff, if this DID offend you, let me know in your next review. This chappie is dedicated to you since I may have just put you on public trial. Hope everyone enjoys the chappie.  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing...oh, and I don't know Rin's age, so I am gonna make something up...sorry!  
  
Adventures in the future and the New Moon  
  
"Mom, I'd like you to meet Sango and Rin, Sango and Rin, I'd like you to meet my mom. Oh, and the cat demon in Sango's arms is Kirara! Hey Mom, where are Grandpa and Souta?" Kagome asked as she made the introductions of her mother's newest guests. She had rushed ahead into the house to make sure it was all right, having forgotten that little detail earlier. Her mom was delighted to have them.  
  
"It's a pleasure to meet the both of you...and you too Kirara!" she said, petting the cat demon, (who was purring contently,) "...I've heard so many good things about you from Kagome and Hekele...Souta is in his room playing with his Gameboy and your grandfather is...oh dear...where is he..." Ms. H. thought aloud. Hekele, Kagome, and Kachie had to stifle a laugh while Sango and Rin just looked around in awe of whatever they saw.  
  
"Aahh!! Demon be gone!!!" yelled Grandpa from the doorway, throwing a paper anti-demon talisman at Kachie. Kachie sighed and took the talisman off her head and threw it in the trashcan.  
  
"...Found him...why does he do that Kagome?" Kachie whined. Kagome blinked at Kachie as her mother tried to calm down her grandfather.  
  
"He's done that before?" she asked incredulously. Kachie nodded.  
  
"Yep...last time was when he and your mom picked me up from the airport...in front of all those people...hey, why didn't he do that to Kirara?" Kachie asked angrily. Kagome and Hekele burst out in laughter while Sango and Rin just shrugged; neither knew what an airport was, but they would ask later.  
  
"Grandpa, these are Sango and Rin. Kirara is the only demon here, and she is a NICE demon. Be nice and no talismans." Kagome said warily to him. He pouted and went back to another part of the shrine where he muttered that he would be sweeping.  
  
"He's probably looking for stronger talismans to ward me away with..." Kachie scowled. This time, everyone laughed.  
  
"Come on, I'll take you upstairs to meet my brother Souta, then you can meet my cat Buyo..."  
  
"...And my guinea pig Tai!!!" Hekele and Kagome practically bounced up the stairs. Sango and Rin followed with Kachie bringing up the rear. Once they got up the stairs they were led to Souta's room, where Kachie knocked on the door.  
  
"Souta...I bought a new videogame..." she bribed, deciding to play a joke on the boy. Souta came running out the door and nearly bulldozed the group of girls over.  
  
"Hi Kachie what game did you-oh...you were kidding...hey, who are these guys?" Souta realized instantly when Kachie held out her hands that she had been joking with him, and then he saw the new girls.  
  
Hekele smiled, "These are Rin and Sango, from Inuyasha's time."  
  
Souta's eyes got wide, "You mean the demon slayer Sango? And isn't Rin the girl that travels with Inuyasha's brother Sesshoumaru? COOL!!!" he shouted, shaking both girls' hands, leaving them rather confused.  
  
"Umm, we were kind of bragging about you two..." Kagome said, embarrassed. Hekele just whistled in a suspicious manner and nodded. Rin smiled at Souta broadly.  
  
"Yes, Rin travels with Rin's Sesshoumaru-sama; Rin loves to!" she said proudly. Everyone smiled at the little girl and Hekele picked her up into a spontaneous hug. Rin squeaked with delight. Sango smiled and drew her attention back to Souta.  
  
"And I am indeed the demon slayer Sango, we are pleased to meet you Souta, Kagome speaks of you often..." she said politely. Souta beamed at the fact and decided to show Sango and Rin around.  
  
"Come in my room! I wanna show you my t.v., my game system, my games, my movies, my computer, and-"  
  
"Ok, Souta, they need to find out what those things are first...we were going to take them to meet our pets right now and perhaps a little later once they get used to everything you can show them, ok?" Kagome said. Souta nodded sadly and Rin, being the cheer giver she is, had to make him feel better.  
  
"Rin will come and visit Souta as soon as Rin meets Tai and Buyo, Rin and Sango-san should also introduce Tai and Buyo to Kirara!" she said happily, pointing to the small cat in Sango's arms. Souta smiled happily, no longer feeling left out.  
  
"Deal!" he said shaking Rin's hand. This time, Rin had an idea of what it meant. She and Sango were ushered away by the other girls as they were showed to their room.  
  
"It's a good thing that we have an extra guest bedroom, why Mom didn't put Hekele in there I will never know..." Kagome said as she opened the door, exposing a room with two beds, one that had been claimed by Kachie the night she had arrived.  
  
"Sango, you'll be staying on the bed with blue blankets...the other one is MINE!" Kachie said in a foreboding voice. Sango smiled and shook her head. She sat on the bed and was in awe of how comfortable it felt.  
  
"Wow...this is amazing..." she said. Rin climbed onto the bed and plopped down on her back.  
  
"Rin likes it here, it's almost as comfy as Sesshoumaru-sama's tail!" Everyone laughed at the cute little girl's remark and dragged their companions a few rooms over a few doorways to Kagome and Hekele's room. Hekele bounced onto her bed and Rin bounced onto Hekele, earning an 'oomph' and a giggle. Kagome sat on her bed and picked up Buyo, who had been lying there, and put him onto her lap. Sango sat next to her and Kirara, having been awoken by the scent of another feline, climbed off of her lap and sniffed Buyo. Buyo gently batted at her two tails, being completely entranced by them, and meowed at her. Kirara, apparently happy with this, meowed back and pawed at his ears playfully. Everyone giggled at the two cats and put them on the floor together so that they could play; Buyo actually ran back and forth a bit. Kagome grinned at this.  
  
"Yep...only a girl cat could get him off his lazy butt! Go figure...if anyone can get him to lose weight its Kirara!" she said. Hekele smiled and set Rin on the bed. She stood up and walked over to her guinea pig's cage; took him out, and went back to the bed, allowing him to run around a bit. Rin squealed happily as he did laps around her small frame and ended up with the little creature in her lap.  
  
"I guess he likes you Rin..." Hekele said happily.  
  
"How does Hekele-chan know?" Rin asked as she pet Tai.  
  
"Cuz he always bites Inuyasha when he sees him...they don't get along too well..." she said, reminiscing.  
  
"Well, Rin is glad that Tai-chan likes Rin...Tai-chan is cute!" she squealed as the guinea pig ran around her lap. Kachie smiled and reached out to pet Tai when he nipped at her finger.  
  
"Dang it! He remembers me!!! Hekele, why does Tai hate me??"  
  
"I have no idea Kachie...he must be smart..." Hekele said jokingly. Kachie grabbed one of her pillows and chucked it at her, narrowly missing her face. Hekele grinned.  
  
"Hey Kagome, you think we can teach these two unfortunate friends of ours the fine art of pillow fighting?" she asked mischievously. Kagome smiled and rolled her eyes.  
  
"Of course we can..."  
  
"Umm, Hekele-chan?" Rin asked sweetly. Hekele looked over at her.  
  
"Yes Rin-chan?" she said to the small girl as she reached out and stroked her now calm guinea pig.  
  
"Why would one fight with pillows?" Sango finished for her, just as confused. Kachie smiled and threw another of Hekele's pillows, this time hitting Sango square in the face. Hekele had to fight a laugh as Sango's face turned from one of confusion to one of utter and complete shock.  
  
"Why did you throw that at me?!" Sango questioned indignantly. Hekele grabbed the pillow that Kachie had thrown at her and threw it at Kagome.  
  
"Cuz that's what you do in a pillow fight!!!" she yelled as Kagome launched a pillow at her. Hekele grabbed it and hit Kagome over the head with it, earning a laugh and a whack in the face with another pillow, this time by Kachie. Rin put Tai back in the cage that she had seen Hekele take him from, (not wanting him to become squished,) grabbed a pillow, and hit Hekele with it cautiously, (just to see if she was serious.) Hekele smiled and gave her a gentle bop on the head with her pillow, causing Rin to giggle. The two started going at it playfully and Sango, feeling a bit left out, joined in the fun. All five of them were whacking each other jokingly when Souta walked in, right when Kagome was dodging one of Sango's pillows. He froze in shock when the pillow came in contact with his face. He stood there dazed for a moment when Sango immediately started apologizing.  
  
"Oh, Souta! I am so sorry! Are you alright?" she asked, running up to him in guilt. Souta just laughed.  
  
"Wow, if you hit that hard with a pillow...I'd hate to see you with your boomerang! No wonder Miroku-sama is always unconscious in the stories Kagome tells me about Feudal Japan!" he said.  
  
Sango was astonished, "You're not mad?"  
  
Souta shook his head, "Nah, Kagome throws stuff at me all the time...'course I always cause the trouble...Oh, now I remember what I came up here for! Mom says it's dinner time, we're having oden!"  
  
Kagome was out of the room faster than you can say 'shoot', "ODEN!!! I LOVE YOU MOM!!!" Everyone laughed and filed out of the room downstairs. Sango hung back a moment and sighed.  
  
"I will tell them about Kikyo after Hekele puts Rin to bed...she does not need to here about all of this..." Sango set her eyes downcast and walked downstairs; this was going to be a difficult evening.  
  
Feudal Japan; with Inuyasha:  
  
Inuyasha sighed as he looked up at the night sky; Kagome and the rest of the girls had been in her time for about five hours now, and Inuyasha couldn't help but feel lonely.  
  
Tomorrow's the new moon...kami, why did they have to go NOW? Don't they remember? he though sadly. Kagome had always been with him when he transformed ever since she had found out about his night of weakness when he became human. Why would she forget NOW? Even though he had always rejected it, Inuyasha knew that Kagome knew how afraid that night made him; she wasn't stupid. All the company Inuyasha would have the next night would be Shippo, Kaede, and Miroku. Sesshoumaru and Koga were looking for rumors to the shards, so even they wouldn't be around. Not that Inuyasha cared about them not being there...they never were, but he did care that Kagome wasn't there.  
  
I can't believe she forgot about me... he thought sadly, his ears drooping. Inuyasha, who was sitting in Kaede's hut by the fire, stood up and walked outside towards the God Tree. He jumped into one of its lower limbs and stared through its branches at the stars...and the last sliver of the moon.  
  
"I'll try again to go through the well tomorrow...Kagome wouldn't have it sealed that long...I hope..."  
  
With Sesshoumaru and Koga:  
  
The two demons walked along a trail that had long been worn away by travelers. It hadn't been a fruitful search for rumors so far, but that was all right: Sesshoumaru wasn't hunting for rumors anyway.  
  
"Wolf Prince...there is a matter that needs to be discussed."  
  
Koga glanced at Sesshoumaru with indifference, "...So discuss."  
  
Sesshoumaru glared at him, "This is a serious matter, it has to do with Naraku...and Inuyasha's Kikyo as well..." Koga turned to Sesshoumaru suddenly, blocking his path.  
  
"What the hell do you know Dog Lord?"  
  
Present time:  
  
It was 10:00 at night and Hekele had just finished tucking Rin into a makeshift bed for the night. Rin's bed was a traditional Japanese bed, which was on the other side of Hekele and Kagome's room. Hekele gently kissed the girl's forehead and bid her sweet dreams. Rin smiled cheerfully and closed her eyes in reply. Hekele smiled and walked down the hall to Sango and Kachie's room. Sango had requested that everyone talk after Rin was put to bed, and Hekele wanted to know what it was about. As she entered the room she saw that Kagome, Sango, and Kachie were already there; Sango looked grim.  
  
"So...what's on your mind Sango?" Kagome asked seriously. Sango sighed.  
  
"Sesshoumaru...approached Houshi-sama and I with some information about Naraku that he had acquired the day before the children were taken. It was the day that they were taken that he told us..." she began, then she trailed off, knowing that what she was about to say was going to hurt Kagome more than anyone else, "and there's some information about Kikyo as well..."  
  
(AN: The following are two conversations. One is Sesshoumaru talking to Koga, and the other is Sango talking to Kagome, Kachie, and Hekele.)  
  
Sesshoumaru talking  
  
Sango talking  
  
Everyone else talking  
  
I was summoned to a meeting by Naraku; when I arrived at the meeting place,  
  
Kikyo was there; Naraku had summoned her as well. Sesshoumaru was asked-  
  
-to assist Naraku in a plan that would ultimately destroy Inuyasha and the rest of his friends. As a reward, I was offered the-  
  
-Tetsusaiga. Sesshoumaru decided that he no longer wanted Inuyasha's sword, which he claimed to Naraku was his reason for NOT assisting him, but Kikyo, whose prize was-  
  
Inuyasha to take to Hell with her, readily agreed. I have no doubt in my mind that the priestess is helping Naraku, and that in retaliation for not helping him-  
  
Sesshoumaru and Rin are also targets, which is why we assume Rin and Shippo were kidnapped, as either a warning, or as part of their plan. When Sesshoumaru approached Houshi-sama and I with this-  
  
-they believed me, and for this I am actually grateful. With all of Naraku's shards, his power has grown to that which even I will not dare face alone. I will be the first to say to you...your help is more than-  
  
needed, Naraku has something nasty up his sleeve, and Sesshoumaru wanted to warn us about it...and help us. We wanted to tell all of you, and Koga, sooner, but we didn't want to tell anyone while-  
  
-my half brother was around, which is why I am telling you now, and the slayer is speaking to the girls in the future. Inuyasha would-  
  
never believe us...so, it's up to you, Kagome, whether we tell him or not; you know him best, and everyone knows-  
  
-about her love for him, even you Wolf Prince. You are in our confidence, and unless the guardian of the Shikon no Tama wishes to disclose this information to Inuyasha, no-  
  
-one will say a word, because we know that you will do what is best for him...  
  
Do  
  
you  
  
believe  
  
me?  
  
Yes...  
  
Feudal Era, with Sesshoumaru and Koga:  
  
"...So...Kikyo is out for Inuyasha's head and he still loves her?! You are correct in that I know of Kagome's feelings towards him, but for him to love another and her as well? And to basically play the reincarnation factor on Kagome so much...now I understand why it hurts her so...If Inuyasha dares to betray her, I'll kill him and whisk her away...she'll love me eventually, because I love her..."  
  
"And what of the new girl? Kachie, I believe? What of your feelings towards her? If you whisk the miko away with you, what will her heart be put through? Will they not be the same as with 'your love'? Will they not be the same in despair?" Sesshoumaru asked wisely. Koga stopped his ramblings and thought for a moment.  
  
"Kachie is amazing. She and I are so alike and yet so tastefully different that it rids me of words to describe the feeling I get from it...I will not deny my growing need to be with her, but should Kagome suddenly say that she loves me as well...then, I don't know what I'd do...I would NEVER want to hurt Kachie, but at the same time, Kagome is-"  
  
"-all you ever wanted?" Sesshoumaru interrupted, "Now I understand how my half brother must feel...you must choose between a past 'love', and a new one; it is the exact situation...and what you must both understand is that human hearts are fragile things. Kagome is ripped to pieces by Inuyasha's love as it transforms both in her favor and out of it, Kachie would be as well if she knew of your own dilemma, and Hekele, as you know from earlier today, is highly aware of what others think of her, and she must appeal to them or else she isn't happy. Rin was made mute by her parents' death before I resurrected her. You must be gentle with them, and that is something that none of us have mastered..."  
  
"...You do care about that Hekele girl don't you?" Koga asked suddenly, catching the demon lord off guard.  
  
"What makes you ask such a question? Other than this morning's coincidental position?" he asked haltingly. Koga looked at him seriously.  
  
"Sesshoumaru, I am by no means that stupid. I saw your facial expressions of amusement and contentment as clearly as I saw your look of seriousness a moment ago. You love her..."  
  
"Even if it were so, at least I am not divided in my...emotions...leave Kagome to Inuyasha, if I am correct in what I sense from Naraku's workings, she may be all that can save him..."  
  
Present time:  
  
"Hekele-chan...Hekele-chan...wake up Hekele-chan..." Rin carefully shook Hekele to awaken her. It was the middle of the night, but Rin had a matter of urgency that demanded attention.  
Upon hearing the child's voice and feeling her little hands try to shake her awake, Hekele stretched and rolled over, facing the child.  
  
"What is it Rin-chan...it's very early..." she said sleepily. Rin pouted a bit, not having wanted to cause trouble, but needing comfort.  
  
"Rin had a bad dream...it scared Rin..." she said, still shaking from her dream slightly. Hekele immediately sat up and pulled the little girl into her lap. She began to gently rock the girl back and forth.  
  
"So Rin...are you going to tell me what happened in your dream?" she asked. Rin buried her face in Hekele's nightshirt and Hekele sighed.  
  
"Rin-chan...it helps to talk about these things...whenever I have nightmares, I talk about them, and I usually feel better..." she coaxed. Rin, who only wanted comfort and not to relive the dream, merely hugged Hekele tighter. Hekele sighed again and chucked a pillow at Kagome, hitting her in the head and instantly waking her.  
  
"Hekele..." she whined, not even turning over.  
  
"Rin-chan had a nightmare Kagome..." she said, almost as sleepily, yet just as awake as Rin. Kagome sat up and stretched. She then proceeded to get out of bed and walk over to sit on Hekele's bed with the other two girls.  
  
"What happened Rin? Usually it helps to talk about it..." she said groggily. Rin thought about it for a moment but held firm.  
  
"That's what I said to her, but she doesn't want tell me about it..." Hekele said. Kagome realized then that she had been reinforcement and decided to keep prying.  
  
"Rin...please tell us what happened, it might bother you less."  
  
"And maybe," Hekele tried, "we can help make it better...after all, it's the three of us versus one dream...I think we can take it on..." Rin giggled at the absurd thought of Hekele, Kagome, and herself attempting to attack a dream and decided to give in.  
  
"...Rin was walking around here...in this house, and Rin was looking for something. Then it felt like someone was grabbing Rin, trying to take Rin away, but Rin couldn't see whom it was. Then Rin saw Hekele-chan and Kagome-san disappear as well. After that, Rin saw Hekele-chan, Kagome-san, Sango-san, Kachie-san, and Rin somewhere dark...like a dungeon maybe. At first Rin thought that maybe our friends would save us, but then the dream got scarier. Rin saw Sango-san crying, Kachie-san was mad and really sad too, Kagome-san was falling from somewhere high and yelling something, Hekele-chan was in a room with lots of blood filling it up like water in a bowl, and she was really scared, and Rin was laying somewhere asleep and no one could wake her up...the strangest part was that only Hekele-chan and Rin seemed to be in the same place, Sango-san, Kagome-san, and Kachie-san were all in different places..." she said slowly, trying to grasp what was left of the horrifying dream.  
  
Hekele looked at Kagome for a second, as if pondering something and looked back at Rin, "How did the dream end?" Rin shook her head.  
  
"Rin's dream ended after that, nothing happened to show why or how it started either..." Kagome gave the girl a small hug and Hekele continued to hold her and lightly stroke her hair.  
  
"I don't know if I am right, but perhaps you had that dream because you're a bit nervous...Do you feel safe here? Even without your Sesshoumaru- sama?" she asked.  
  
Rin nodded, "Rin misses Sesshoumaru-sama a little already, but Rin feels safe..."  
  
Kagome smiled, "Maybe you had that dream because you felt a little alone without Sesshoumaru, and that if anything happened he wouldn't be able to protect you if you're here. Perhaps the reason you saw Hekele, Sango, Kachie, and I in the dream with you is because we are the ones here that you are with now...in your dream we were all alone, maybe that's because none of the noisy, bossy boys that we are so used to are here with us. And didn't you sit in Souta's room for a few minutes after dinner and watch him play video games?" Rin nodded.  
  
"And Souta let Rin play a little too, it was a fighting game, but Rin wasn't that good at it..." she said. Hekele gave the girl a little squeeze.  
  
"I think that that's why you dreamed that you couldn't wake up, or that Kagome was falling, or even that I was in a pool of blood; you were useless in the game because you aren't good at playing it yet, then you died and that's why it showed up in your dream!" Hekele said cheerily, making Rin smile a bit.  
  
"Thank you Kagome-san and Hekele-chan, Rin feels better now..." Hekele and Kagome smiled. Kagome gave the girl another hug and went back to her bed. She was still pondering everything that Sango had revealed to her a few hours before. She wondered what she would do about Inuyasha. She had to tell him, but at the same time, she didn't want to make him think that she was betraying him. She closed her eyes and prayed for sleep.  
  
Hekele combed her fingers through Rin's hair for a moment before speaking, "Rin, want to stay with me tonight? Whenever I had a nightmare when I was little, I always would stay in my mom's bed and it helped me feel safer..." She released the girl's raven locks, idly wondering how she was going to style her hair the next morning. Rin surprised Hekele by turning around and giving her a huge hug.  
  
"Thank you Hekele-chan, Rin won't have bad dreams now!" she said happily. Hekele gently hushed the girl, for fear of waking the rest of the house and nodded to her. She got Rin's pillow, (not willing to spare either of hers,) and helped the girl get back to sleep by gently rubbing her back as her mother had often done to her. Hekele smiled as she heard Rin's breathing even out and yawned. It was well past 2:30 according to the new alarm on the nightstand, so Hekele rolled over to her side of the bed, curled up, and went to sleep.  
  
The next day:  
  
"Rin-chan...I think Kachie's sleeping habits have worn off on Sango...can you go and wake the two up???" Hekele asked as she, Ms. Higurashi, and Kagome made breakfast. Grandpa Higurashi and Souta were sitting at the kitchen table reading the paper; Grandpa, the new reports on supposed super natural sightings, and Souta, the comics.  
  
"Ok! Rin is happy to help!" said the little girl. Souta paused and then dropped the comics.  
  
"Can I help?! I wanna show Rin my silly-string gun!" he said suddenly, standing up. Kagome rolled her eyes.  
  
"Let Rin try to wake them up nicely first, if they just roll over and go back to sleep, then you can get them with the silly-string...ok?" she said. Souta nodded and took Rin upstairs. Kagome had seemed a little down that morning, as if something had been bothering her, but Souta didn't say anything, he just tried to make things happier and easier for her so that she could forget whatever was bothering her.  
  
"And be nice about it!!!" Kagome called after them. Ms. H. chuckled and Grandpa plugged his ears. Hekele and Kagome braced themselves and then it came. The shriek.  
  
"SOUTA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I AM GONNA GET YOU FOR THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Kachie could be heard screaming as she ran down the stairs after the said boy. When Souta made a dive into the kitchen and behind his mother, Kachie could be seen running into the kitchen. She looked like a decorated Christmas tree with multi-colored string covering her body. Rin cautiously bounced in with a groggy Sango close in tow. Sango, whom hardly made it to the kitchen table without collapsing, wasn't decked out in Souta's silly- string.  
Ms. H. laughed at the girls and Grandpa just rolled his aging eyes. Souta cautiously sat opposite of Kachie at the table as Hekele and Kagome began placing food from the stove on everyone's plates. Rin sat next to Hekele's spot and Sango next to Kagome's seat. Ms. H. sat down on the other side of Rin and started to chat with the young girl.  
  
"So Rin, how old are you?" she asked.  
  
"Rin-chan is six years old, she will be seven three days before the fourth moon cycle from now."  
  
Hekele looked at Kagome and the two smiled, "That means three months and twenty-seven days from today. Right Kags?" Kagome nodded, being used to how time was marked in the feudal era.  
  
"Wow, lucky, I gotta wait six months before MY birthday..." Souta complained. Everyone laughed and began to eat. Kagome was the first to speak.  
  
"Well, what are we going to do today? I wanna show these two around!" she said excitedly; she had decided to try and forget about her impending decision for a few days and enjoy her friends' stay with her. Hekele looked at their friends and smiled.  
  
"Well, we could take them shopping. We have stuff that they could wear and blend in with for now, but it would be fun for them to have their own stuff too..." she said. Kagome smiled and Sango woke up a bit.  
  
"Shopping? But Hekele, Rin and I haven't any money..." she said. Both Hekele and Kagome shrugged.  
  
"We can pitch in and buy you a few things; it's no big deal," Kagome said. Hekele nodded. Kachie was still trying to get the silly-string out of her hair so she really didn't have an opinion as of yet.  
  
"Well, it would be interesting to return home with a few additions of attire from this time..." Sango thought aloud. Hekele grinned broadly.  
  
"Alrighty then! Now that that's settled, let's finish our food so that we can get ready! I'm sure that there's something Rin can wear, and Sango can borrow something from either me or Kagome so that they blend in," she said happily. Rin smiled got excited.  
  
"Can Rin get clothes that match Hekele-chan's clothes?! Can Rin cut her hair like Hekele-chan's?!" she asked in a slightly hyper tone. Hekele giggled.  
  
"Rin-chan can get a few clothes like mine, but I don't think that your Sesshoumaru-sama would like it if you got your hair cut...are you trying to be my clone or something?" she asked, very flattered that the young girl wanted to look like her. Rin cocked her head to the side in wonder.  
  
"What's a...clone?"  
  
Souta bounced up, "A clone is an exact copy of something. So for you to be Hekele's clone, you would have to look just like her!" Kagome and Ms. H. looked at him oddly.  
  
"Souta, what video game have you been playing lately?" Kagome asked. Souta shrugged.  
  
"Naruto; I like the doppelgangers..." Kagome rolled her eyes again.  
  
"Doppelgangers are just like clones Souta..." she said.  
  
"Oh..."  
  
Rin giggled, "Yes, Rin wants to look like her Hekele-chan." Hekele blushed but smiled. Rin was just too cute.  
After breakfast Kagome sorted through her childhood clothes and picked out an outfit for Rin, (some blue jeans with pink vines on the sides and a pink t-shirt with 'Princess' written in a baby blue color,) and loaned Sango a tight blue t-shirt. Hekele loaned her a pair of black cargo pants. Hekele brushed Rin's hair and braided two French braids down each side of her head into pigtails that went just bellow her shoulders. She looked adorable.  
  
"I used to wear my hair like that when I was your age, before I cut it short. It's a compromise. Deal?" she asked. Rin nodded.  
  
"Deal!"  
After another ten minutes of getting ready, the girls were off to the mall. They decided to walk, so that they could take in more of the modern world before they got to the mall. Kagome, Kachie, and Hekele were bombarded with questions left and right. Cars, light posts, signs, buildings, clothing, cell phones, you name it, Sango and Rin wanted to know about it. Kagome was used to questions like this because of Inuyasha whenever he came to her time, but Hekele and Kachie didn't know what to answer first. Slowly, Kagome's mind drifted to her favorite hanyou...she wondered how he was doing.  
  
Probably trying to jump through the well still, or bothering Miroku, or even hurling Shippo into the sky for a couple of miles, or even- her thoughts were interrupted by a shout.  
  
"KAGOME!!!" three voices seemed to yell simultaneously.  
  
Oh no...not now... she thought as she in took a sharp breath and turned to face her three school friends. Hekele growled to herself, knowing what loud creatures these three were.  
  
Oh great, I'm beginning to think like Sesshoumaru...perfect... she thought, both sarcastically and affectionately. Kagome's friends ran up to her and began talking a mile a minute.  
  
"Kagome! How are you doing?"  
  
"Have you recovered from the flu?"  
  
"Who are these people?"  
  
"I heard that you dumped Hojo two weeks ago, why did we have to hear it from him and not you?!"  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"Can we come too?"  
  
"Why are you still hanging out with Hekele?"  
  
"Didn't we tell you that she was a bad influence?"  
  
"Why is your face turning red? Are you getting a fever?" They asked one after another, not waiting for an answer to any of the questions. Rin was holding her ears, for the three girls were hurting her ears with their chattering. Sango merely stood still and politely listened, though she wished she could politely cover her ears as well...  
  
"Guys...could you please not ask so many questions, just this once?" Kagome answered them with her own question, though hers was a bit colder. She noticed as Hekele seemed to shrink to the back of the group while her friends were speaking about her. One second Hekele was seething, and the next she was depressed. Kagome was getting rather annoyed with her friends...again.  
  
"Kagome, we told you that you shouldn't hang out with her, your picking up on her bad temper!"  
  
"Yeah! And you never spend time with us anymore, she is almost as controlling as your abusive, stubborn, possessive, and not to mention rude boyfriend!"  
  
"How does she treat Souta? Is she good to him?"  
  
"And does she give your mother and grandfather the respect they deserve?"  
  
"I hear that Americans don't respect Japanese culture and that-"  
  
"STOP IT!!!" Everyone turned to the little girl who looked very angry with the three new people standing in a small huddle. Kagome's three friends instantly fell in love with how adorable she looked.  
  
"Oh! Aren't you the cutest thing!"  
  
"Are you Kagome's cousin?"  
  
"What's your name?" said one with really short hair as she reached out to take Rin's hand. Rin pulled her hand away and ran next to Hekele and Sango.  
  
"Stop being mean to my Hekele-chan! Hekele-chan's nice!" she yelled at them defensively, hugging Hekele's waist tightly. Hekele blushed at the young girl slightly and watched as Kachie also took a step in front of her.  
  
"And even if she was everything you said, I'm ten times worse..." she said threateningly. Kagome's friends took a step back and glared at Kagome.  
  
"Did Hekele brainwash the girl? Are you going to let them talk to us like that?! We're your friends!!!" one asked rudely. Kagome took in a deep breath.  
  
"Guys, these are Kachie, Sango, and Rin. Along with Hekele, they are some of my best friends in the world, and I refuse to let you speak ill of ANY of them. Hekele has been through more in one year than you ever will in a lifetime; Sango and Rin have had it pretty rough too, and Kachie...well, Kachie's just a great friend that is so dedicated to her friends that she got herself expelled so that she could come here and see how Hekele was..." Kagome continued on and on, leaving her friends in a state of shock.  
  
"Didn't I do that because I was bored?" Kachie whispered to Hekele.  
  
"Shut-up, she's trying to make you look good..." Hekele whispered back.  
  
"Oh..."  
  
"...and I will not be friends with people who judge others before they try to understand them! I said it a few days ago and I'll say it once more, DO NOT JUDGE THEM!!!" Kagome finally finished. Her friends looked at her as though she were an alien.  
  
"Kagome, are you saying that you don't want to be friends with us from now on?" they asked. Kagome fumed.  
  
"YES!!! PLEASE STOP BOTHERING ME AND MY FRIENDS!!!" she yelled. The three girls looked at her with the most shocked faces imaginable, turned around, and walked away in a huff, chattering about how Kagome needed to hang out with different people. Rin thought for a moment and yelled to the girls.  
  
"And Rin wasn't brainwashed by Hekele-chan!!!" Everyone looked down at the girl oddly.  
  
"How do you know what that word means Rin?" Kagome asked. Rin actually smirked.  
  
"Jakken-sama always says the Rin brainwashed Sesshoumaru-sama into keeping her and taking care of her, and eventually, Rin figured it out..." Everyone laughed until Sango said something.  
  
"Was I invisible a moment ago? Because, no one besides Kagome even mentioned my presence, or noticed me. And what was all that about anyway? I couldn't understand a word they said! Are they friends of yours Kagome? Did you just sever the friendship? What the heck just took place?!?"  
  
Kagome laughed, "I'll talk to you about it some other time Sango, right now I wanna shop!" Rin grabbed Hekele's hand and pulled her in the direction that Kagome and Sango were heading in. Hekele smiled at the warm fuzzy feeling that seemed to over take her as she squeezed the girl's hand back and followed.  
  
At the mall:  
  
Hekele waited patiently outside the dressing room door with Rin as Sango attempted to try on a black dress that she had instantly fallen in love with, despite how low-cut the neckline was.  
  
"Sango...you've been in there for five minutes, come out already!!!" Ok, so Hekele wasn't so patient, but she really wanted to see how it looked on her.  
  
"Umm, I can't decided whether I like it or not..." came Sango's distressed voice. Hekele rolled her eyes as Kagome walked up with another outfit for Sango to try on.  
  
"Sango, come out here so WE can see how it looks on you..." Hekele replied.  
  
"...Fine..." With that, Sango opened the door to the stall and walked out. Hekele and Kagome just stared at her for a moment with one thought uniting their minds: Miroku would be in heaven.  
Sango's dress was a sleeveless style that fit her figure perfectly and which flared out from the waist and extended to her knees. There was a silver snake-like dragon embroidered around her waist and stomach, it's head centered just below her chest. From the waist down were specks of silver every so often. A pair of black high-heeled sandals that strapped around her ankles completed the outfit. Sango looked gorgeous.  
  
"Wow Sango-san, Sango-san looks pretty..." Rin said in awe. Sango blushed and Kachie strode up to them with another outfit for Sango, one that was much more casual. Even she was impressed.  
  
"Alright Sango! I wonder what the monk would say if he could see how good you looked..." she teased. Sango blushed a few more shades of red before saying anything.  
  
"Umm, so, should I get it? I know that I might not have anywhere to wear it to for a while...but I guess I like it...a lot..." she said, clearly thinking of the mentioned monk and wanting to show off for him. She blushed even more when a guy walking by whistled at her, which caused the other teenage girls to laugh.  
  
"Yah, I think you ought to get that one Sango, it is so great looking on you," Kagome said truthfully. Sango nodded her thanks and went back inside the stall to change into the other outfits that had been brought for her.  
  
Kid's section, an hour later:  
  
Rin bounced out of her dressing room wearing a blue Evanescence t- shirt and black cargo pants that were similar to Hekele's. Kagome and Sango rolled their eyes at the girl.  
  
"You were serious when you said that you wanted to look like Hekele eh?" Kachie mused. Rin nodded.  
  
"Rin think that Hekele-chan's clothes are cool looking," she said, using the new word that Souta had taught her the night before when she was trying to describe what she thought of his game. Kagome, who had figured this part out, rolled her eyes, but smiled.  
  
Five hours later, on the way home:  
  
The girls each had at least two bags each as they were walking back to Kagome's house. By this time it was mid-evening. The girls were tired, but they still chatted like they had just woken up.  
  
"Rin likes it here; can Rin come back for her birthday?" the young girl asked, to no one in particular. Kagome turned to her and smiled.  
  
"Three days short of the fourth moon cycle from today, right?" she asked. But before Rin could answer her Kagome froze. Sango looked at her friend oddly.  
  
"What is wrong Kagome?" she asked. Kagome stared into nothing as she spoke.  
  
"Three days short of the fourth moon cycle from TONIGHT?" she asked, as if hoping she were wrong. Rin nodded and Sango understood.  
  
"Inuyasha." she stated simply. Kagome nodded.  
  
"What about Inuyasha?" Kachie asked curiously. Hekele and Rin nodded questioningly.  
  
Kagome ran a hand through her hair in bewilderment, "Every new moon Inuyasha turns into a human. He loses all of his demonic powers, his claws, his fangs, and his ears. Also, his hair turns black and his eyes turn brown...oh kami, how could I have forgotten? This is the one night that Inuyasha is actually afraid...he feels useless and...alone...no wonder he was so upset that we left..." she trailed off, feeling more guilt than she could bear.  
  
"...Kagome, would your mother be opposed to Inuyasha staying the night here with us? I believe he has before...perhaps he can come here, that way, you would get another night of rest and no one would have to worry about him getting hurt there..." Sango suggested. Kagome looked to her other friends hopefully.  
  
"...You wouldn't mind would you?" she asked. Hekele, Kachie, and Rin shook their heads.  
  
"Of course not Kagome! We all love Inuyasha, well, not love, but you know what I mean; it's no problem if he's here...Sango told us what she needed to tell us, so there's no reason NOT to have him here..." Kachie piped in.  
  
"Besides, I think we owe him for duck taping him to a tree and sticking him with Miroku for a night...the poor guy must be going nuts..." Hekele said truthfully. Rin nodded.  
  
Kagome hugged her friends tightly and took off running, "I'm going to unseal the well! If he comes he comes!" she shouted back to them. They looked to Sango for a translation.  
  
"Inuyasha won't take a sympathy gesture, so she will unseal the well, and if he tries to jump down, which we know he will, he'll be able to get through and be here without feeling like we feel pity on him...Inuyasha HATES people feeling pity for him..." she said as she picked up her pace. Hekele, Kachie, and Rin did so as well as they all began running back to the shrine.  
  
Feudal Era, just before dusk:  
  
Inuyasha leaned on the trunk of the God Tree and sighed. He had been trying all day to get through the well, and it hadn't gone very well. He felt so lonely suddenly; Kagome had actually forgotten him, he had hoped that she would have come back today with Sango, Kachie, Rin, and Hekele, so that she could be with him on this night. She was ALWAYS with him on this night. But, like he had feared, she had truly forgotten him, and it hurt.  
Inuyasha watched with dismal as the sun set in the west, hiding from him behind the horizon. It was then that he could feel the change. He had never told anyone, but to turn human caused pain. Turning back into a hanyou wasn't nearly as bad, because his healing powers and his strength were returning, but when he was loosing them, it was an entirely different story. He cringed slightly as his claws and fangs reseeded, and as his ears disappeared. He fought back the single, pained tear that threatened to fall when he grew his human ears. Gods but it ached! He slumped against the tree more as he felt his strength disappear, and when he saw his silver strands turn black he sighed. It was done; he was human. It was then and only then that he noticed something in the darkened distance.  
  
Kikyo's soul stealers? She's here... Suddenly relief flowed over him. Kikyo...she would stay the night by his side...wouldn't she? Inuyasha stood and ran for all that he was worth to where he saw the stealers hovering. He burst into a clearing and there she was, like a fallen angel; beautiful, yet tragically poised.  
  
"Kikyo..." he said softly. The dead miko turned to him and, despite her demeanor, her eyes grew wide and her jaw seemed to drop a bit in complete surprise.  
  
"Inu...Inuyasha?" she said tentatively. Inuyasha nodded.  
  
"It's me Kikyo..." he said quietly, but he knew that she had heard him. He didn't expect what would happen next.  
  
"Inuyasha! How could you?! How could you turn into a human?!?" she yelled at him, suddenly enraged. Inuyasha took a step back.  
  
"B-but, Kikyo...you wanted me to become a human..." he said, almost sadly. Kikyo fumed.  
  
"When did you do this?!? How did you do this?!" she continued, wanting answers. Inuyasha's face downcast.  
  
"It happens every new moon, and then I turn back into a human in the morning..." he said, confused and hurt. Kikyo's face turned slightly less cold at this, but still held all the hate that she dared to show.  
  
"Why haven't you ever told me of this!?! Don't you trust me?!? How long has this been occurring?!?!?!" she continued her shouting, altering her voice to seem hurt.  
  
Inuyasha felt as though she had just fired her miko's arrow into his heart again; not trust her? She thought that he didn't trust her? "Kikyo...it's always happened like this...since I was born...and the reason that I never told you was because I didn't want to reveal any weakness...I trust you..."  
  
"Do your other friend's know of this?!? My reincarnation?!" she pressed forcefully. Inuyasha dropped his hands to his side and looked down. He nodded slowly, wondering to himself why he hadn't even thought of telling her, and yet he wanted Kagome near him so much during this time that it hurt. He felt sick of himself.  
  
"You won't trust me and yet even SHE knows?!" Kikyo was now very aggravated.  
  
"...Yes, Kikyo...I'm sorry, I should have trusted you with my secret...but it was a complete accident that Kagome found out anyway, though it was quite a while ago..." he admitted, feeling more and more hurt by her harsh words.  
  
"Inuyasha, you've betrayed me for the last time! Go!" she yelled, faking tears that she didn't even know that she could create, "Leave me alone! I never want to see you again!"  
  
Inuyasha's heart broke, he could actually feel it happen, "Kikyo..." he began, taking a step towards her, wanting to explain and do whatever it took for her forgiveness. Kikyo stepped away from him and surrounded herself in her soul stealers. They raised her into the sky.  
  
"Good-bye Inuyasha!" she spat. With those last heart-wrenching words, she disappeared. Inuyasha stood there for a moment, completely frozen in anguish. He was sad, hurt, but mostly scared. Inuyasha was scared that he was alone again. Kikyo had just rejected him, had just abandoned him, all because he hadn't trusted her...again...  
Suddenly Inuyasha started running. He didn't want to feel alone. He knew of one place that he could go that he would not be alone. He had been trying to get there for the past two days, but something inside of him pulled him towards the well, to Kagome, as if telling him that he could go now. He didn't want to stop and think about how illogical this impulse was, he only wanted to be by her, that's another thing that he didn't understand. Kikyo had just abandoned him, and he ran to Kagome? What would she say to him? Would she...reject him as well? Inuyasha didn't want to think about that. He just ran until he saw the well. He didn't even pause before he jumped inside, and was overjoyed when the familiar blue light enveloped him in all its warmth.  
  
"Thank you Kagome..." he said softly as he landed on the other side of the well.  
  
Kagome's house:  
  
Kagome sat on the couch with a bag of chips in her lap. Her mother had taken Souta and her grandfather to visit their ill relative again, as they had done Hekele's first night in Japan, so they would be gone for a day or so. Kagome had waited up for Inuyasha, just in case he came. Everyone else had decided to go to bed and give the two some privacy. Hekele and Rin were the first two to bed, followed by Kachie a few minutes later. Sango had been expecting this and had remained awake to speak to Kagome.  
  
!!!!!Flashback!!!!!  
  
Sango sat next to Kagome on the couch and watched the television for a few minutes before speaking.  
  
"I'm sorry if I am intruding Kagome, but are you going to tell him about Kikyo when he comes?" she asked, concerned. Kagome sighed.  
  
"No...not yet, I want a chance to apologize for forgetting about him, and to make it up to him somehow...and don't you mean IF he comes?"  
  
Sango laughed a bit, "No Kagome, WHEN he comes. You know as well as I that he will be here. I don't know why and I don't know how he'll know the well will work this time, but he will, and he will come." Kagome smiled a bit and nodded.  
  
"When I do tell him...I want everyone to be there to back me up, I don't know if I could face him alone while delivering the news to him..."  
  
"Do you fear that he would harm you?" Sango asked. Kagome shook her head.  
  
"No, I just don't want to be alone when I watch his heart break...it would break mine as well..." she said sadly. Sango nodded and gave Kagome a supportive hug.  
  
"I'm going to go to bed; mend his emotional wounds when he comes, and we'll be there when you tell him, ok?"  
  
"Alright, good night Sango."  
  
"Goodnight Kagome."  
  
!!!!!End Flashback!!!!!  
  
Kagome stretched and heard a noise outside. She braced herself for his entrance, and for his yelling and accusations. But they never came. She heard first a tentative knock at the front door, one that seemed not to know whether it should be knocking at all, and then she heard a slightly more urgent knock. Kagome stood at this and smiled on her way to the door. Inuyasha was learning; he knew that people would be asleep upstairs so he came to the door for once.  
Kagome slowly opened the door to reveal a human Inuyasha. He looked a bit relieved that she had opened the door for him, and yet, most of his features were laced with anguish.  
  
"Umm, hi Inuyasha...want to come in?" she asked, not knowing what else to say to him. Inuyasha nodded and Kagome stepped back to grant him entrance. Inuyasha was at a loss for words as well it seemed.  
  
"...Have you eaten anything? I could fix you some ramen...I know that Hekele practically banned you from it while we were back in your time..." Kagome continued, remembering how Hekele had insisted that he eat something besides his favorite food.  
  
"No, thank you Kagome..." he said, trying his best to be polite. Kagome seemed a bit surprised by this but she tried not to show it.  
  
So much for my peace offering... she thought idly as the two walked into the living room and sat on the couch. Inuyasha hesitated but sat next to Kagome, still feeling his need to be near her. They were silent for a long time; neither knew what they should say. Finally, Kagome took the initiative.  
  
"Inuyasha?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"I'm...I'm sorry. I shouldn't have forgotten about the new moon and you becoming human. I didn't even remember until earlier this evening..." she admitted.  
  
"Is that why you unsealed the well?" Inuyasha asked. Kagome nodded.  
  
"Yeah, I figured that maybe you might get sick of Miroku or something and try heading down the well once or twice..." she said, only half lying. She closed her eyes and braced herself for his reaction. She could not believe what happened next. Inuyasha wrapped his arms around Kagome's waist and pulled her into a tight embrace. He buried his head into the crook of her neck and held her possessively. Kagome, surprised by his embrace, sat there for a moment before cautiously snaking her arms around him as well and returning the affection. She gently combed her fingers through his hair and inwardly wished that he still had his dog-ears so that she could rub them for him, knowing very well that despite his protests and whines that he truly liked it when she rubbed them. She contented with herself fingering his hair, however, and began to hum a soothing song without realizing it.  
  
"What song is that?" Inuyasha asked after a moment of the peaceful music.  
  
"It's a song by Jessica Andrews...'Helplessly, Hopelessly'." she said. Inuyasha frowned.  
  
"I didn't sound sad..." he said. Kagome giggled a bit and shook her head.  
  
"It isn't sad, she's just talking about how she feels about someone..."  
  
"She thinks they're hopeless?"  
  
"No silly, here, want me to sing it for you?" she asked. She didn't see Inuyasha's suddenly happy face. She would sing...for him? She had lulled Shippo to sleep with her beautiful voice...but now she would sing to him? Despite how distraught he was, he felt honored...  
  
"You would...sing for me?" he asked, as if testing her. Kagome smiled.  
  
"Of course I would! Do you really want me to?" she asked again. Inuyasha nodded softly into her neck. Kagome smiled and laid her head so that it rested on his softly.  
  
"I can stand with the weight of the world on my shoulders;  
  
I can fight with the toughest, of the tough.  
  
I can laugh in the face of all my insecurities...  
  
Anytime, anywhere, anything...  
  
I'm strong enough..."  
  
Inuyasha sighed softly into her neck as she sang the song. He was still holding her tightly, but somehow her gentle voice made him feel more at ease. Kagome began the chorus.  
  
"But when you're holding me like this,  
  
I'm carelessly lost in your touch.  
  
I'm completely defenseless,  
  
Baby it's almost too much...  
  
I'm helplessly, hopelessly, recklessly falling in love..."  
  
Inuyasha nodded a bit, to show that he understood the title now. He felt as though the song were meant for this particular moment in time between him and Kagome. He liked it. She's singing for ME...not Shippo, not Rin, not that wimpy wolf Koga...or that idiot Hojo for that matter...but ME... He smiled softly as Kagome squeezed him a bit tighter for a second before picking up the second verse.   
"So let consequence do what it will to us, I don't care.  
  
Let the stars stand as witness to it all.  
  
Say the word and tonight I will follow you anywhere...  
  
I just can't pretend anymore, I'm too sturdy to fall."   
Kagome continued to stroke his hair, idly realizing that the song seemed to fit the very situation they were in, and exactly how she felt about him. She loved how they were wrapped in each other's arms for the moment...   
"But when you're holding me like this,  
  
I'm carelessly lost in your touch.  
  
I'm completely defenseless,  
  
Baby, it's almost too much.  
  
I'm helplessly, hopelessly, recklessly falling in love."
>> 
>> Inuyasha nuzzled Kagome's neck softly. She deserves to know how I feel...even if I will always be held to Kikyo, though she hates me now...gods I feel confused. Kikyo hurts me and I run to Kagome, but I still love Kikyo...I'm afraid of being alone, but if I keep this up I will be... he thought as Kagome continued more softly. "I am not afraid, I am not afraid..."   
A smile appeared on Inuyasha lips as the sweet lyrics touched his ears. And neither will I...everything will work out eventually...I hope...I'll tell Kagome how I feel...   
"'Cause when you're holding me like this  
  
I'm carelessly lost in your touch  
  
I'm completely defenseless  
  
Baby, it's almost too much  
  
I'm helplessly, hopelessly, recklessly  
  
Falling...  
  
(Helplessly, hopelessly, recklessly falling)  
  
I'm helplessly, hopelessly, recklessly falling in love..."   
Inuyasha gently released Kagome from his hold and looked at her. Kagome looked at him sadly for a moment.  
"You didn't like my singing?" she asked, looking downcast. Inuyasha was quick to respond.  
"No, no! I loved it! It was beautiful..." he said, trying to comfort her quickly. Kagome looked up at him, surprised.  
"You...think it's...beautiful?" she asked. Inuyasha blushed five shades of red and looked around the room, at anything but her, and nodded slowly. Kagome threw her arms around his neck in a tight hug, surprising him thoroughly.  
"Thank you Inu-chan! That's sweet of you!" she said happily, having not expected him to be so nice about it. Inuyasha blushed again but gently wrapped his arms around her waist again. He was going to say it. Now was the perfect time to say it. He had to tell her...  
"Aishiteru Kagome-chan," he said quickly, almost too quickly for Kagome to hear him...but she did.  
"Inuyasha..." she said softly, trying not to choke on the words that she had longed to hear him say to her for so long. She gently released him and looked at his face. Inuyasha was looking at the floor, was determined not to look at her. He knew what she was about to do to him, but he had had to get it out...  
Kagome cupped Inuyasha's face in her hands and forced him to look her in the eye. She smiled, "Aishiteru Inuyasha...I love you too..." Inuyasha looked at her with wide eyes for a moment before pulling her into a loving embrace. He gently placed a kiss on her forehead and rested his head on hers again. He rocked her back and forth for a few minutes.  
"Inuyasha, we should get some sleep if you want me to round them up to come back with you in the morning..." Kagome said, nodding up the stairs where her friends were sleeping. Inuyasha looked at her again.  
"You'll...come back with me tomorrow? But you were only here a day..." he said. Kagome smiled.  
"Consider it my peace offering for forgetting tonight..." she said. Inuyasha leaned in and lightly kissed her lips, slightly shocking the girl in his arms. Kagome eagerly kissed him back, wanting to prove that she had meant every word that she had said to him. After a moment the two parted for air and Kagome blushed. Inuyasha smiled softly and lowered his gaze so that she couldn't see his own blush as he pulled her into his lap and let her lean on him. He pulled the blanket that was resting on the couch over her to keep her warm.  
"Oyasumi nasai Kagome-chan..." he said softly. Kagome blushed deeper but rested her head on his shoulder.  
"Good night Inuyasha... Aishiteru..." and with that, Kagome was asleep.  
  
Me- I did it, I did it, oh yeah, yeah, yeah!  
Kagome- No flaming here tonight, oh! Flaming here tonight...  
Kachie- No, no, no, flaming here tonight...  
Sango- She got the chappie up!  
Inuyasha- Looks at the four singing girls with a bit of interest. If you wanted to attract attention to yourself, you could have just said so; there's no need to dance around on a stage in skimpy clothes and make Miroku drool...  
Miroku- Drools all over himself at the four happy girls Must...grope...  
Sango- Hits Miroku over the head with her boomerang DON"T BE A PERVERT!!!!!!!!  
Me- I'm gonna sick Sesshy on your ass!  
Kachie- I'm gonna sick Koga on you!!!  
Kagome- Inuyasha! We are NOT wearing skimpy clothes!!! Oswari for being a hentai!!!!!!!!!!!  
Inuyasha and Miroku- In a huge crater on the floor as the four angry girls walk away Was it something we said?  
Me- R&R if you want them to live.


	11. Rude Awakenings and Sinister Plots

Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Ok, wow. That's all I have to say to you people. Wow. I have gotten over 90 reviews for this FF thus far. I am amazed. I want to thank everyone who reviews on FF, especially those of you who do not have accounts on here. It means a lot to a writer when a person tells them just how much they appreciate their work. For those of you who check my story everyday for updates, I really want to thank you; it's devoted fans like you that keep a writer going.  
  
I am going to dedicate this chapter to all of the people who review to this story. Just so you know, this chapter contains the beginning of Naraku's evil plot. The next four chapters after this will each be significantly shorter than my usual chapters for two reasons:  
1. They may be song fics that relate to the events I want to put into  
the chapter  
2. You will find out No. 2 at the end of the chappie.  
  
Also, I have a disturbing announcement to make: My father is dragging my little brother and I on a vacation out west...we'll be seeing everything worthwhile, (except the Grand Canyon, which is all I wanted to see.) We will be driving the entire way...and will be gone for two weeks!!!!!!!!!!!! A terrible crime, my loyal friends, because I will not have access to a computer, let alone a computer with internet, for the whole trip. We will be leaving on July 17th. and will return between the 27th. and the 30th. I wanted to tell you this so that you know that it will be a long time before I update again. I sincerely hope that you all understand that I didn't ask to be trapped with my dad for that long, and if it makes up for my soon-to-be lack of updates, I will be totally miserable for the entire trip. I will update again as soon as inhumanly possible, but even Inuyasha would have trouble putting his foot down with my hard-assed dad around...  
  
Well, on to the chappie, and I hope that everyone loves it.  
  
P.S. I own nothing...damn filthy, greedy, good-for-nothing Lawyers...  
  
P.P.S. My dad, as some of you have asked, is not physically abusive of me, I just hate him with a passion, had a nightmare one night, and based my character's past for this story on that nightmare. So, here's to two weeks of hell and car accidents, (he wants me to drive...I just got my permit, like, days ago...and am scared witless...) If anyone hears about a tragic car accident in the Rocky Mountains involving a 15 yr. old, her father, and younger brother from Michigan...make sure Evanescence plays at my funeral and that Rumiko Takashi comes and that she reads my fic...also, Kachie, like I told your sister when I went on the expressway for the first time last week...I want a cherry wood casket...and I want it to be nice and luxurious...and I want to be buried with all of your anime drawings...  
(Kachie Runa is the next Rumiko Takashi, e-mail her for her anime-in- the-making summary, which inspired this Hekele's 'attitude'. Her e-mail address should be in her profile on this site...also, please help me to bug her about putting one of her awesome fanfics on this site!)  
  
P.P.P.S. I'm only half joking about the whole car accident/funeral thing.......  
  
Rude Awakenings and Sinister Plots  
  
Sango, Hekele, and Kachie peaked down the staircase into the living room where Sango had left Kagome to await Inuyasha the previous night. They could barely make out two small dog-ears visible over the top of the couch.  
  
So...he did come last night...Sango thought to herself. She took a step forward, wanting to see where Kagome was, when the stairs creaked. Sango jumped about five feet when she saw Inuyasha's ear twitch. Kachie rolled her eyes and shook her head; she hopped onto the banister and attempted to slide down as silently as possible. Luckily, she succeeded.  
  
Since when did she get so sneaky? Last I checked she was the Queen of Klutzville...Hekele thought as she imitated her friend, just as silently. Sango hesitated for a moment, glancing at the hanyou's white ears for movement, but then followed their example.  
Once the girls were at the bottom of the stairs, they sneaked into the living room and carefully crept around the couch to see Inuyasha's face and to look around for Kagome. What they saw nearly sent them into a fit of 'awes'.  
Inuyasha had his arms wrapped around Kagome and her arms were wrapped firmly around his waist with her head resting on his chest. It was a very touching sight.  
  
"Should we wake them?" Kachie whispered as quietly as she could. Hekele and Sango shook their heads and motioned for her to follow them into the kitchen where they could talk without waking their sleeping companions.  
Once in the kitchen, Hekele opened the fridge and got out some eggs. She set them on the counter and looked at her friends.  
  
"What do you all say to some scrambled eggs? And sausage?" she asked in a slightly hushed tone, still aware of the hanyou sleeping in the next room. Kachie nodded and Sango, trusting the two's judgment on what tasted good in this era, did as well. Hekele grabbed a bowl and cracked a few eggs into it and began to scramble them up.  
  
"So how are we going to wake 'em up?" Kachie asked. Hekele and Sango looked at her thoughtfully, glanced at each other, and then Hekele spoke in the same hushed tone as before.  
  
"I think that it would be best if they started the morning off well. We want Inuyasha to be on the best terms possible with everyone when we tell him about...you know..." she drifted deep into thought as she trailed off.  
  
Inuyasha and Kagome were so close to each other...and she knew that their friendship could survive pretty much anything; she could tell that by only spending a day with them...but what about this Kikyo person? She had never seen Inuyasha interact with her...in fact, she had only heard of the priestess once before this occasion...when Inuyasha and Kagome were explaining to her about the well and traveling back in time...and how Kagome met Inuyasha, who was pinned to the God Tree by an arrow fired by...  
  
Kikyo...Hekele thought as she came to the realization of whom the group was dealing with. Kikyo shot an arrow at Inuyasha and pinned him to that tree...why would Inuyasha love her??? Even if he did before then...how could he love someone that tried to kill him? Hekele thought suspiciously. It was then that she realized that someone was speaking.  
  
"...and so I think that Hekele is right...we should allow them to wake on their own..." Sango was talking to Kachie, trying to reinforce what Hekele had previously said. Hekele, seeing an opening for speech, decided to get some questions answered.  
  
"Sango? Isn't Kikyo the woman who pinned Inuyasha to the tree?" she asked, trying not to sound too interested. She didn't know why, but something about the supposed relationship between Inuyasha and this priestess didn't add up.  
  
Sango looked at her in surprise, "Yes...you did not know?" she asked. Hekele shook her head.  
  
"I should have, I just didn't put two and two together till now...but...didn't she die?" she continued with her questions, trying to find the tidbit of information that seemed to be eluding her.  
  
Sango nodded gravely, "Yes...she did...but a while after Kagome and Inuyasha met, a witch demoness stole Kikyo's ashes and some earth from her grave...and created an artificial body..."  
  
Then something clicked in Kachie's mind, having been listening to the conversation, "Don't Kagome and Kikyo share a soul? Isn't Kagome Kikyo's reincarnation?" she asked. Then the wheels in Hekele's mind turned as she saw where her friend was going with this question.  
  
"How can they both exist at the same time if they share a soul?" she asked Sango. Sango sighed and shook her head.  
  
"The witch stole Kagome's soul and placed it in the body of ashes and dirt...Kikyo was reanimated. Then, by some power that no one understands, Kagome's body called her soul back to her...but Kikyo still escaped with a small part of it. Kagome retains enough of her soul so that she continues to live freely; Kikyo got so little of it that she needs to devour the souls of young girls to stay alive..." she said slowly. Hekele lowered her eyes, almost feeling pity for the dead woman...almost.  
  
Kachie was more than irritated, "So she won't give up Kagome's soul? She's making Inuyasha miserable, she's hurting Kagome in a round about way...so why does he love her?" Sango shrugged.  
  
"Who knows? All we know is that Inuyasha feels indebted to her...for she died and went to hell whereas he lived...she was his first love...the first person that he ever trusted...perhaps because she died thinking that he had betrayed her and then supposedly still loved him after she returned to 'life', he still loves her..." Sango thought aloud. Hekele nodded, knowing where the hanyou would be coming from should that be the reason. Kachie sighed.  
  
"Well then...let them be woken up by breakfast...if I try to wake them up I might strangle that stupid hanyou..." Hekele and Sango nodded a supportive smile. Suddenly they all heard little footsteps rushing down the stairs, announcing Rin's awakening. The three girls smiled and shook their heads. The little girl was so loud in the morning... Wait... So...loud...  
  
"Hekele-chan?!? Kagome-san?!? Sango-san?!? Kachie-san?!?" she shouted as she came running through the house, not knowing at first where all of her companions were. Then the girls heard a loud thump, a feral growl, and an innocent, "oops..."  
  
Feudal Era, with Naraku:  
  
"Are the preparations set Kagura?" he asked wickedly as he walked down the hall of his large palace. The wind witch looked at him hatefully, not being able to defy him any other way and live.  
  
"Yes master...everything is as you wished them," she spat. Naraku grinned evilly, knowing well how she wished him dead.  
  
"Good...see to it that such prudence doesn't fade..." he said as he quickened his pace.  
  
"Yes Naraku."  
  
"And another thing...when our guests arrive I want them to you understand?" he asked darkly.  
  
"If you mean for me to give them the deepest, darkest, dirtiest, and not to mention dankest cell in your dungeon...then yes, master, I understand..."  
  
"Perfect...I shall go to retrieve them now...this shall be fun..."  
  
Present Era:  
  
Inuyasha growled at Rin, who was sitting on the floor clutching a doll with long black, curly hair, blue eyes, and a long periwinkle kimono, (which Inuyasha had never seen before,); both seemingly looking at him with innocent eyes.  
  
Must have gotten it while shopping...he thought, still very aggravated. Rin had first shouted for the other girls, then she had accidentally run into the couch, more specifically, his head, and now she was looking at him with those huge eyes of hers. Inuyasha had half a mind to bonk her on the head, but his better judgment told him that if he did, he would have a lot of very unhappy people down his throat...most of all, Hekele and Sesshoumaru...  
  
"Watch it runt...some people are trying to sleep here..." he grumbled. Rin nodded an apology and ran into the kitchen with the doll, after Inuyasha sniffed the air and pointed in that direction. It was then that, when she stirred in his arms, that Inuyasha remembered that he had fallen asleep with Kagome on her couch...and what had happened the previous night. He smiled affectionately and kissed her forehead.  
  
"Kagome...Kagome..." he whispered into her ear, attempting to awaken her nicely. Kagome stirred and nuzzled her face deeper into his chest. Inuyasha smiled again and lightly shook her.  
  
"Kagome...we need to get up...everyone else is..." he said soothingly. Kagome moaned in protest and Inuyasha could tell that she was awake. He tapped her head, causing her to giggle a bit and open one eye.  
  
"What?" she said, trying to sound mad. Inuyasha rolled his eyes.  
  
"You gotta get up Kagome...I think the others are plotting our demise...and breakfast..." he joked lightly. Kagome smiled, sat up slowly, and stretched a bit before crawling off of Inuyasha's lap. She stood up and looked at the hanyou before her happily.  
  
"Well, than let us meet our demise and breakfast head-on." Inuyasha chuckled and followed her as she walked into the kitchen; they were met with stares and evil smiles.  
"Now what were you two up to last night?" Kachie asked suggestively. It was then that Inuyasha and Kagome silently wished they had woken up first.  
  
Inuyasha tapped his foot impatiently in Kagome's doorway while watching the five girls pack their belongings, "Kagome...when can we leave?!?!"  
  
Kagome rolled her eyes, "Inuyasha, we went shopping, meaning we bought things...things that are going back with us..." Inuyasha growled, annoyed. As much as he loved Kagome, he did not love her time. It always smelled of pollution and that horrid 'perfume' stuff; Inuyasha wouldn't even stay here if Kikyo were to forgive him, ask him to be himself, and give Kagome back her soul while staying alive at the same time...in short, it wasn't gonna happen. Also, he didn't know why, but it annoyed him that Rin and Sango were dressed in clothes from this time; Sango wasn't so bad...but Rin looked like a miniature Hekele.  
  
"...Inuyasha...please be nice about it...we bought everyone something..." Sango said teasingly, after earning a look from Kagome that seemed to plead for assistance with the disturbed hanyou.  
  
So much for 'best terms possible'...he's irritated that we aren't leaving fast enough when we shouldn't have to leave yet at all... Hekele rolled her eyes violently as she helped Rin pack her new clothes.  
  
"You...bought everyone something?" Inuyasha asked, surprised. Kagome nodded, thankful for Sango's assistance.  
  
"Yes...it's nothing important...and we didn't want to get everyone gifts of different value...it's kinda corny really...but we thought that you'd all like them at least a little..." Kagome stuttered out, feeling stupid about the gifts that they had gotten for their friends, it really wasn't anything special. All they happened to be were small symbols of what each member of their oversized 'team' meant to them.  
  
Inuyasha, despite Kagome's explanation of how 'corny' they were, was quite interested, "What kind of things?" he asked. It was Rin's turn to pipe in.  
  
"The presents are all alike and yet all different at the same time, and we all helped to pick out the right one for everyone!" said the young girl. Inuyasha looked at her oddly.  
  
"'All alike and yet all different'?" he asked. Kagome nodded and grabbed a small piece of folded tissue paper.  
  
"Here's yours Inuyasha, we all helped to pick out the one we thought that you'd like best..." she said shyly. Inuyasha took the small package gently, not wanting to damage whatever lay inside. He carefully unwrapped the paper, completely aware of how everyone was staring at him as he did so.  
When he folded back the last piece of the wrapping, his eyes enlarged amazingly. What lay in his hand was a necklace; hollow glass shaped like a katana filled with tiny red and black colored stones that contrasted with a single, pure white, grain of rice. The small piece of glass was also filled with water, which magnified what was written on the grain of rice: Inuyasha.  
  
"You...got me a necklace that has my name written on a grain of rice in it? In the shape of a sword..." he said, almost as though he didn't believe it.  
  
Kagome's eyes watched him critically, wanting to know what he thought of their carefully thought out gift, "...Do you like it?" she asked. Inuyasha quickly put the precious necklace around his neck so that it lay across his chest with the rosary.  
  
"I love it...and I'm guessing that you got everyone else one of these too? With different shapes in the glass and different colored stones and their name?" he asked. Everyone nodded.  
  
"...I think that it'll mean a lot to them as well..." he said honestly. Kagome smiled and gave him a huge hug, surprising the hanyou. His ears whirled around his head nervously as he returned the embrace.  
  
"Thank you Inuyasha...we're glad that you like it!" Kagome said. She unwrapped her arms from around his neck and Inuyasha felt as though there was much less weight hanging from it. He looked down at his new gift and realized that his rosary was gone. He looked at Kagome with a bewildered face and saw that the item in question was held tightly in her hands. Shock was written all over his face as he looked at Kagome.  
  
"You..." was all that he could get out.  
  
"I trust you Inuyasha...just don't kill Shippo, Sesshoumaru, and Koga at your first chance, ok?" she asked, only half joking. Inuyasha nearly had tears in his eyes.  
  
She trusts me...this much? "Kagome...thank you..." Inuyasha looked at the rest of the girls, who were standing there smiling knowingly at him. Inuyasha felt loved that moment, so loved that it nearly made him act extra mushy...nearly.  
  
"...So..." Inuyasha said while clearing his throat, suddenly feeling uncomfortable with all the unusual happiness in the air, given why he had come the previous night. It didn't seem right for him to be so happy when he came to Kagome after...Kikyo, "...why's the squirt dressed like Hekele?"  
  
Naraku watched the exchange of the gift from afar. He had used the Shikon Shards to completely hide his scent and to give him the ability to turn invisible for a few moments as he prepared for his self appointed mission.  
  
Inuyasha...not only will you suffer...but with my tests so will everyone you touch...and as for the women you and your 'friends' hold so dear...they will die of broken hearts! He thought this and only this as he spotted a small doll in the kitchen of the house...and grinned.  
  
Feudal Era:  
  
Inuyasha landed softly on the other side of the well with Kagome in his arms. His rosary wrapped around her wrist. Somehow, it made him happy to know that she wasn't throwing it away. He jumped out of the well to make room for the rest of the group and gently set Kagome on her feet. He then helped a disgruntled Sango out of the well. Inuyasha snickered; it had taken an hour to find Kirara, and when they finally had found the cat demon, she had been nuzzled next to Buyo, still soundly sleeping. When Sango tried to wake her and take her home, Kirara had thrown a hissy fit, literally. It had taken another twenty minutes to drag the meowing cat demon down the well and away from her new 'boyfriend'. In the end, they had to promise to bring her back for a visit soon.  
  
"Kirara, stop meowing...I told you that we'd go back soon," Sango said to the noisy bundle on her back. A deep chuckle reached her ears and she smiled.  
  
"What's the matter with our favorite cat demon?" Miroku asked as he gave Sango a light embrace, causing her to blush deeply.  
  
"Oh nothing...she's just infatuated with Kagome's cat Buyo and didn't want to leave..." she said. Miroku chuckled again and released her. He was smiling.  
  
"Miroku...your nose..."  
  
"Lady Kaede was kind enough to give me some herbs and such that would heal it faster...looks like it worked huh?"  
  
"Miroku, it's bleeding..."  
  
"Sesshoumaru-sama!!! Rin's back!" the young girl giggled as she saw Sesshoumaru standing near the well, having been the one to smell their return, he had arrived first. He lifted Rin out of the well and was nearly squeezed to death when she hugged him. When he could pry her off gently, he helped Hekele out of the well as well.  
  
"Thank you Sesshoumaru. And how has your time been without a little munchkin popping up everywhere?" she asked as he set her down. Sesshoumaru smirked.  
  
"Surprisingly loud..." he said, glaring at Miroku; the monk had a tendency to talk when the world wanted him to shut up. When Sesshoumaru and Koga had returned late the previous afternoon, all the monk had done was talk...even the kitsune was fed up with him...  
  
"Awe, too bad, cuz we had fun, right Rin?" Hekele jeered slightly. Rin bounced up and hugged Sesshoumaru again.  
  
"Yup, but Rin missed her Sesshoumaru-sama." Sesshoumaru smiled slightly at this and, after taking a good look at what Rin was wearing and how her hair was styled, looked back to Hekele.  
  
"Well, it's not too difficult to deduce who shopped with Rin now is it?" Hekele rolled her eyes and shook her head.  
  
"Hey, you're just lucky that I didn't give in when she wanted her hair cut like mine...I had to compromise with pig-tails..." she said pointedly.  
  
"Umm...hello?" Everyone glanced around for a moment before looking back into the well. A very irritated Kachie met their gaze. She was hanging on to the vines within the well desperately and she pouted her lower lip.  
  
"Guys? I'm still down here, how about an assist??? Please?!?!?!"  
Miroku, being the gentleman that he was, graciously extended his hand for her to grab so that she could be pulled out. Kachie smiled thankfully and allowed him to help her out of the well. Once on her feet, Kachie smiled as she dusted herself off.  
  
"Thank you Miroku, at least someone-" Kachie was caught off as she felt something, or rather, someone caressing her rear.  
  
"Aahh, but, it was well worth it Kachie-san..." Kachie wasted no time in throwing the monk over her shoulder and down the well. Only when she heard the ever-so satisfying crash at the bottom did she speak.  
  
"If you ever touch me in such a disrespectful manner again, I will personally feed you to the next demon I see...oh, hi Koga!" she redirected her statement as the said wolf demon sped up the path towards the well.  
  
"Why didn't anyone wake me up?!?!?" was Koga's 'brilliant' reply. Shippo, who was riding on his shoulder, shook a small angry fist at the group.  
  
"Yea!!! Why didn't anyone wake us up?!?!?" he shouted, mostly directing the statement at Inuyasha, not knowing that he had spent the night with the girls.  
  
"Hey runt, don't press me...I've had a rather pleasant morning...so I'm warning you, do not make me mad...besides...I was with them..." Inuyasha said in his defense, pointing to the girls, who nodded. It was then, while the spotlight was on him, that Miroku, (who had just climbed out of the well,) saw what lay about Inuyasha's neck...and more importantly...what wasn't there...  
  
"Inuyasha...what's happened to your rosary?" he asked seriously. Inuyasha blinked for a second but then smirked happily. Shippo, who now also noticed the absence of the rosary, made a speedy beeline for Kagome's arms for safety. Koga's eyes got wide and took a step back, knowing very well that the rosary controlled the hanyou when upset. It wasn't that he feared him...he just wasn't up to a brawl right then...  
  
Kagome held up her arm with the rosary wrapped around it while smiling, "I took it off him...it's not like he's gonna try to kill us...he...really doesn't need it on him..." Shippo looked up at her with terrified eyes.  
  
"Kagome...are you feeling ok? Did Inuyasha make you take it off him? Did he hurt you?" he asked at a mile a minute. Inuyasha frowned dangerously at this.  
  
He actually thinks that I would hurt her? What kind of idiot is he?!?!? He thought angrily. But, he had just practically promised not to maul the kit so he stayed put. This surprised the members of the group who hadn't been in the future when the rosary was removed..  
  
"No, Shippo, if he had hurt me, which he didn't, then you would notice...besides, you and I both know that he wouldn't do anything like that to any of us..."  
  
Well, at least someone's got positive faith in me... Inuyasha thought as he gently wrapped an arm around Kagome. This earned him a raised brow from Sesshoumaru, a shocked look from Shippo and Miroku, and a slight glare from Koga.  
  
Koga's glare, however, lasted mere seconds, as he turned his attention to Kachie, (whom he was now standing by,) wishing to explain his tardiness, "Sorry, I wasn't here to meet you...I kind of overslept...and didn't know you were returning today anyway..."  
  
Kagome, who was blushing slightly at Inuyasha's embrace, (which, she noted, he seemed to be doing proudly,), opened her backpack and took out several small, wrapped packages. It was everyone else's turn to receive their gifts.  
  
"These are for everyone...we all helped to pick them out...Inuyasha already has his..." she said, handing everyone their gifts. They looked at them for a moment before opening them...  
Miroku's face turned soft when he saw his necklace. The glass was shaped like praying hands with purple and black beads in it...along with a single grain of rice that held his name inside of it. It was, to him, the most precious gift he had gotten in his entire life.  
Koga's necklace, (which Kachie had had the final say in,) was that of a beautiful wolf's head with brown and silver stones. He looked at it in shock for a moment, clearly surprised by such a precious gift. He then smiled.  
  
Yes, they all helped to pick them out...but only Kachie could single out such a lovely combination...he thought to himself.  
Shippo was bouncing up and down on Kagome's shoulder when he saw his necklace, which was shaped like a piece of candy. It was filled with light blue and bright green stones.  
Sesshoumaru looked at his necklace critically for a moment, trying to see the meaning of his gift; clearly everyone else's held a symbolic meaning to it... Then he smiled softly as he realized what it was: A fang. He shook his head in mild amusement. He had wanted his father's fang, (Inuyasha's sword,) for so long...so whoever had finally decided upon his gift had given him a fang...  
  
Probably Hekele and Rin...and everyone else had just gone along with it...yes, that is most likely...he thought as he looked at the grain of rice, which held his name. The stones surrounding it were dark sapphire blue and golden. It was quite elegant really, simple, but elegant. All the individualized necklaces were...  
  
"Well...does everyone like them?" Kagome asked nervously. The other girls seemed to share her nervousness; they had all helped to pick out the gifts, but they had also been a bit more critical about the gifts when it came to ones that they cared for a bit more.  
  
Koga was the first to put his on. "I love mine!" he said enthusiastically, and honestly; he gave Kachie a small hug, letting her know that he understood who really picked out his gift. Miroku followed suit and put his on as well.  
  
"They are very kind and thoughtful gifts...and mine is most appreciated." He couldn't help but look at Sango when he said it.  
  
Shippo was bouncing around again, "Now if only it was a real piece of candy..." He hugged Kagome's neck tightly and then bounced over to Sango, Kachie, Hekele, and Rin one by one to do the same. (He didn't quite understand that the gifts weren't as equal an effort as the boys had been told they were...but then again, that's what the girls had wanted...)  
  
Sesshoumaru still looked at his before carefully putting it around his neck, he eyed Hekele and Rin, (who was looking in a bag of some sort for something,) suspiciously as he spoke, "They are rather thought out and symbolic gifts...they represent each individual remarkably well..." Which everyone knew was his version of a, 'Yes, I like it, and thanks,'. The girls smiled triumphantly.  
  
Suddenly, Rin panicked, she had opened her new bag of clothes and was looking for something she wanted to show Sesshoumaru, "Rin forgot her doll! Rin got a doll while shopping and she must have left it in the kitchen at Kagome-san's house!" Hekele kneeled down and gave the distressed girl a hug.  
  
"Don't worry about it...We can go back and get it really quick...alright?" she said sweetly, knowing very well that Rin would cry if she couldn't show her Sesshoumaru-sama her new toy. Kagome nodded in support.  
  
"Yeah, I'll come too, I think we left that kitchen a bit messy anyway..." she said, suddenly realizing that Inuyasha had pulled them out of the room to get ready before they had had a chance to clean up...  
  
"All right, that's settled. Why don't you all go on ahead back to the village, we'll be there in a few minutes. Ok?" Hekele suggested. Everyone nodded and the three girls hopped back down the well to clean up and to locate the missing doll.  
Inuyasha stopped for a moment, feeling a slight chill go down his spine as the girls left again, but he shrugged it off, thinking that he was just getting lonely without Kagome in his arms. He looked to his friends as they slowly walked back to Kaede's village, each seemingly deep in thought. He caught Sesshoumaru gently fingering his necklace and grinned.  
  
"I take it you like what the girls picked out for you?" he teased daringly, but not without putting a few more steps between himself and his older half-brother. Sesshoumaru spared him an apathetic look before gently tucking the necklace beneath the collar of his kimono.  
  
"Can one not admire the simple elegance in the colors and separate components?" he asked, trying not to let his touched emotions show through. Inuyasha and Koga snickered.  
  
"True, but you practically admitted your feelings for Hekele to me the other day when we were looking for shard rumors..." Koga said, grinning evilly. Inuyasha's eyes widened considerably.  
  
"Oh? And how did that happen?" he asked, grinning as evilly as Koga. Sesshoumaru chose not to kill either of them...he merely waited for his best opening to retaliate...  
  
"Well, I was talking about Kachie and he mentioned how 'fragile' human emotions were and gave a few examples...Hekele being one of them. I confronted him about it and he said, 'Even if it were true, at least I am not divided in my emotions...' Now, is that his version of a love confession or am I imagining things?" Koga asked Inuyasha slyly. Sesshoumaru hid his smirk.  
  
Alright now...just endure this humiliation a moment longer...the bait has been set...he thought.  
  
"Well, I don't know about you Koga, but I think it is..." Inuyasha smirked, clearly enjoying the moment.  
  
Now to break up their newly found friendship...Sesshoumaru thought as he made sure that Kachie and Sango were far enough ahead not to hear him and he cleared his throat. "Actually Koga, I believe we were discussing how you felt about Kachie in comparison as to how you felt for Kagome...and how you seemed to love them both in a similar fashion...and I believe that is why I was discussing with you the frailty of human emotions, so that you would know not to break Kachie's heart, which she has clearly given you a piece of. Also, I recall using many examples, Hekele was merely one of them..." he stated factually. The beauty of his little plan was, in fact, that he didn't have to lie. He could enjoy his little unorganized, yet very effective, plot knowing that he didn't have to tell a half-truth. He knew that Inuyasha knew this as well.  
  
"WHAT?!?!?!?!?! How dare you!?! You have Kachie, who clearly has feelings for you, and you still want Kagome, who clearly does not?!?!?!?" he yelled. Koga, not seeing Kachie, Shippo, (who was in Kachie's arms,) and Sango turn around, (having heard Inuyasha yell,) was quick to retaliate.  
  
"Oh, and you are Saint Inuyasha, who only loves one woman?! I do recall a certain dead priestess that happens to have a hold of your heart!? What do you see in such a creature? She stole a piece of Kagome's soul!" he yelled back. Sesshoumaru winced as he saw Kachie's face begin to tear up.  
  
Damn...I believe that's the unorganized part of my plan...the damn wolf just had to go and say it in those specific words...and they say that wolves are intelligent creatures...Feh! He thought in mild guilt as Kachie turned around and ran towards the village with Shippo, not wanting anyone to see her cry. Koga quickly picked up the scent of salt though, and looked in time to see her disappear around the corner.  
  
Shit...stupid! How could I have forgotten that she was there?!?! He thought as he glared at Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha before running after her. Inuyasha shook his head.  
  
"It's not like it matters whom I love though, not now anyway..." he said somberly. This attracted the attention of the remaining members of their little group.  
  
"What is it you mean, Inuyasha?" Miroku questioned. Sango nodded.  
  
"Yes Inuyasha, what are you getting at?" she asked. Sesshoumaru merely paused and graced the group with his now emotionless eyes. Inuyasha knew something that they didn't, and that, considering the circumstances, was not a good thing.  
  
"She left me," Inuyasha said quietly. This made even Sesshoumaru's eyes widen a bit.  
  
"What?" Sango asked. Inuyasha sighed.  
  
"She saw me as a human. She...was angry that I never told her about it before, and yet you all knew about it...she felt betrayed...and said that she never wanted to see me again...then she just left..."  
  
"...And that's when you came to see Kagome on the other side of the well...you needed someone to comfort you..." Sango said, trying not to let any of the spite she was feeling to escape her. The group noticed, however, and let her go on with interest, "You needed to feel like someone was there for you, so you ran from your past love, who abandoned you, to your more recent one who has already said that she would never leave your side when you needed her. You're playing them against each other. Have you said anything to Kagome about this incident with Kikyo?" she asked, he tone rising with hurt for her friend.  
  
"No...we were having a good time together, and I didn't want to ruin it. I FELT SO DAMN BAD ABOUT IT TOO!!! I FELT CONFUSED, ANGRY, SAD, AND EVEN, IN MY OWN WAY, BETRAYED, SO YES! I WENT WHERE I THOUGHT I WOULD BE AT LEAST A LITTLE WELCOME, AND I WAS!!!!!!!!!" he yelled back at her. Kirara meowed angrily and Miroku stood in front of Sango protectively.  
  
"Inuyasha...I understand how you must feel...but please do not take it out on Lady Sango..." he said sternly. Inuyasha was about to attack him but Sesshoumaru grabbed his arm and held him firm.  
  
"I do not think it best that you harm your friends...they are good to you...more than you realize. They only try to protect Kagome...as you well understand..." he said in a low voice that sent chills down Inuyasha's spine.  
  
"What do you care? You do not, cannot possibly understand how difficult this is. But like I said, it doesn't matter now."  
  
"That is where you are wrong Inuyasha." Inuyasha looked back at the monk, who had dared to speak again.  
  
"And how am I wrong?!"  
  
Miroku winced at his tone. There was something that he desperately wanted to say to the hanyou, but Sesshoumaru had said to wait for Kagome to say it and to simply back her up...so he tried the lesser of a way to approach the matter, "Inuyasha...you never chose between them. If Kikyo hadn't...betrayed you...would you have still wound up in Kagome's time this past night? Or would you have been in the arms of Kikyo?" Inuyasha wanted so much to rip his throat out then, to make those accusing words choke him...but he knew that he was right...he would have been with Kikyo...and none of what had happened the previous night with Kagome would have happened...maybe never?  
  
"Feh!" was all he said as he snatched his arm back from Sesshoumaru and dashed towards the village, wanting to get away from the conversation desperately.  
  
Miroku nodded thanks to the demon lord and sighed, "I thought as much...Lady Sango...what happened between the two last night?" His question was serious, not perverted for once...  
  
Sango shook her head, "We were all asleep...those two were the only ones awake..." Miroku nodded slowly, putting an arm around Sango's shoulders so that he could lightly embrace her in support as he spoke.  
  
"...Were you able to tell Kagome?" he asked. Sango nodded.  
  
"She said that she wanted to wait for us all to be around to support her...probably today...soon," she said, subconsciously resting her head on his. Miroku nodded gently, not wanting to force her off.  
  
"We suspected as , let us await the return of Kagome, Hekele, and Rin in the village..." he said, turning her in the direction of the path again. The two began walking in silence as Sesshoumaru pondered everything up to that moment.  
  
If Naraku doesn't kill me...these idiots will...he thought sarcastically as his mind reviewed the incident that had just come to pass. Kagome and Hekele aren't going to be too happy with me...that's certain. He continued to ponder what would happen when they found out about the trouble he had caused. It's not like they could hurt him...but they could make a living hell of his life. Sesshoumaru sighed and continued down the path after the humans when another, more delayed thought reached his brain.  
  
Why did Kikyo abandon him? What good would she be to Naraku if she and Inuyasha weren't together?  
  
Present Era:  
  
"Rin!!! Did you find it yet?!?" Kagome yelled from the kitchen. They had turned the kitchen upside-down looking for the doll, and they still couldn't find it. Kagome and Hekele were wrapping up the cleaning while Rin looked for her toy elsewhere, but she still wasn't having much luck.  
  
"No!!!! But Rin is still looking!!!" came the young girl's cry from the living room. Hekele and Kagome stepped back and glanced around at the kitchen, as if to satisfy themselves that it was clean enough. After giving each other a firm nod of approvement, they walked out of the room and went after Rin to help her look.  
When they got into the living room, Rin was currently putting the cushions back on the sofa; she had been certain that she hadn't sat there in the morning, but it was good to look just in case.  
  
"Any luck?" Hekele asked, scanning the room with her eyes. Rin shook her head sadly. Kagome gave her a small hug.  
  
"Let's take a look in mine and Hekele's room. Perhaps you set it on the bed while we packed?" she suggested. Rin nodded and the three headed up the stairs.  
Once they entered the room, they were quite surprised. There, sitting on the bed, was the doll. It was just as Kagome had said; only it was perfect. So perfect it was scary. The doll was propped up against a pillow with perfect creases in her kimono; her hair fell about her shoulders and back with almost ritualistic precision. It was unnerving.  
  
Kagome got a chill, "Hey, come on guys, we found the doll, let's get back now..." Hekele and Rin nodded. Rin grabbed the doll and they were about to head out the door when it slammed in their faces.  
  
"Kagome, what the hell is going on?" Hekele asked, putting an arm around Rin. Kagome was about to shake her head when suddenly a rush demon aura reached her senses.  
  
"Naraku..." she said fearfully. Hekele's eyes got wide and her grip on Rin tightened. Suddenly, a low, dark chuckling was heard behind them. The three girls spun around and came face to face with none other than the hanyou himself. He had long, wavy, dark hair, blood red eyes, and a pale face; he was sitting on the edge of Kagome's bed. He wore the most sadistic and manipulative smile neither Hekele nor Kagome had ever seen.  
  
"Well, well...I must admit, I thought you'd find me sooner...miko..." he said as he stood up and took a step towards the group. The three backed up a step instinctively. What were they going to do?  
  
"W-what do you want Naraku?" Kagome tried to ask bravely, but suddenly without Inuyasha nearby...she felt so small compared to this enemy...and her arrows were all in her backpack downstairs...  
  
"Why else would I be here? I've come for you three..."  
  
"Why? What do you want with us?" Hekele dared. Naraku's grin widened.  
  
"Because I want to rid the world of yours and Inuyasha's pathetic existence...and I want to have a bit of fun while I'm at it..."  
  
He turned to regard Hekele and the frightened girl behind her, "Not that I hold any malice towards you, but your presence will also be required."  
  
Hekele, upon a slight nod from Kagome, quickly opened the door and shoved Rin into the hallway, "Run for the well!" Rin obeyed and ran down the stairs. Naraku's grin turned into an open smile.  
  
"Her presence is required as well. I am sorry to say that she won't get as far as out the front door." As if on cue, Rin's yell could be heard.  
  
"The doors are both stuck!!! Rin can't open them!!!"  
  
"Keep trying!" Kagome yelled to her.  
  
"The slayer and the other wench from this time will be joining you as well..." Naraku said, taking another step towards them. Hekele and Kagome were trapped. The door slammed behind Hekele and two of Naraku's appendages whipped out at them and Kagome and Hekele were forcefully slammed into the wall behind them, successfully knocking them out. There was a slight trace of blood on the wall where Hekele had hit her head and Kagome's torso had a long cut where Naraku's appendage had hit her.  
  
"Two down..." Naraku could hear Rin pounding on the door downstairs and even trying to break a window, but nothing, he knew, could work, "...Three to go."  
  
Feudal Japan:  
  
"Inuyasha...I believe that you are mistaken in your rage. First of all, you cannot blame Koga for feeling emotions that you yourself feel. Second of all, the monk and slayer were simply concerned that their friend was a second choice, a rebound. They wanted to protect her." Sesshoumaru had been trying to mend the breach that he had created between Inuyasha and his friends since they had gotten back to the village, he had even gone so far as to consol him. Not that he really cared...he just didn't feel like growing a conscious and having it pester him...or had that already happened?  
  
"Give it a rest Sesshoumaru-sama, Inuyasha is too bull-headed to understand his own feelings...ye should know that," Kaede said as she walked past the group of disgruntled people. Koga was trying to talk to Kachie, Shippo was hitting him in the head for hurting her feelings, Kachie herself was sitting in a corner trying to make sense of what she felt, (she didn't know whether to forgive and forget or just forget on an account of all she and Koga had done to show that they cared in the least was a small peck on the cheek,) either way she felt a bit jealous of Kagome for having such devotion out of both men who loved her, Sango was seated next to Miroku trying to understand things from Inuyasha's point of view, knowing that he at least loved Kagome a little, and Miroku had his arm still around her and was talking to her soothingly, trying to help her distress in any way that he could. Kaede rolled her good eye at the group and returned her attention to Sesshoumaru.  
  
"I must be leaving to a nearby village...I know it is quite a bit to ask of ye, considering the group we are dealing with, but please think out yer retaliation better next time. If ye don't, I can guarantee they'll all end up this way...even ask the baphoon comforting Sango...none of his half- witted schemes ever work..." she said, half sternly, half while smiling. Sesshoumaru gave a slight nod and Kaede left.  
  
"M'lord? Why do you allow her to speak to you so?" Jakken asked as he entered the room from another door with some firewood. Sesshoumaru sat there and looked at him sternly.  
  
"Because there is no reason for anger when she is correct. Inuyasha, that is what I am trying to get across to you..." he said, turning his attention to the hanyou once more. Inuyasha rolled his eyes. He was about to make some snide remark when he stopped. He looked at Sesshoumaru sharply and the demon sniffed the air. He rose abruptly.  
  
"Naraku."  
  
"His scent is coming from near the well..." Suddenly the whole group was out of their stupor and looked to be battle ready.  
  
"What are we waiting for?!" Shippo yelled. Sesshoumaru stared at him for a moment and then looked to Inuyasha, who nodded.  
  
"We're going through the well, stay here to protect the village if he comes this way, we are going to get Kagome, Rin, and Hekele, they've been gone way too long..." Inuyasha said, dashing through the door. Miroku stopped Sesshoumaru.  
  
"Here, you'll need a shard to get trough the well!" he said as he put a shard of the Shikon no Tama into Sesshoumaru's palm. Sesshoumaru nodded in thanks and was right behind Inuyasha. Sango looked to Miroku.  
  
"Do you believe it has begun? Naraku's plot?" Miroku nodded grimly.  
  
"I do believe it has Sango, come, we must be ready to fight." He looked to Kachie and Koga, who were standing and at ready.  
  
"I hope we can do this..."  
  
With Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha:  
  
Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha ran towards the well for all they were worth. If Naraku was anywhere near that well...only bad could happen. They prayed that he was merely passing by on his way to attack the village he knew they were in habit of going. But as they neared the well, their worst fears were confirmed. Naraku's stench went into the well, and by the smell of things...it had been there a while.  
  
"How can this be? We should have been able to smell him hours ago, why didn't we?!?" Inuyasha yelled, clearly confused.  
  
"His scent is hours old and yet you've only been back in this era for about thirty minutes." Sesshoumaru mused this thought, "He must have found a way to conceal his scent...we must hurry!"  
Without another word they jumped into the well. Sesshoumaru was in awe of the odd feeling it gave him. It was a type of warmth and it felt much like he was floating. It would have been a pleasurable experience were it not for Naraku's hateful scent and evil intentions.  
When they reached the other side, they leapt out of the well and Inuyasha opened the shed door leading outside. Everything Sesshoumaru saw aroused his curiosity but he didn't let it show. Inuyasha ran to the shrine and burst through the door with Sesshoumaru, who was not familiar of his surroundings as of yet, still right behind him. It was deathly quiet. The two sniffed around for a moment before picking up a mixed scent of blood coming from upstairs. They turned pale and ran up the stairs and into Kagome's room. No one was there. It took less than a second for Sesshoumaru to detect Hekele's blood on the wall, and for Inuyasha to find a small trace of Kagome's on the floor. Sesshoumaru grimaced as he touched the wall.  
  
"Naraku's scent is still fresh. He is still in this era..."  
  
"In this very dwelling actually." The two turned quickly, weapons drawn and at ready. At first they saw nothing, then, before their eyes, Naraku appeared. He was sitting on Kagome's bed, the way he had been when the girls had been caught off guard. To his left, on Hekele's bed, lay Kagome, Hekele, and Rin; all were unconscious.  
  
"What the hell did you do to them Naraku?!?!?!" Inuyasha yelled, pointing his Tetsusaiga at Naraku. Sesshoumaru's eyes turned a blood red and he let out an angered growl. Naraku laughed.  
  
"Why, whatever do you mean? Here they are, safe and sound...at least for now."  
  
"Why do you want them?" Inuyasha yelled. Naraku grinned another sadistic grin.  
  
"Why else? To see you squirm." Naraku gave another laugh as the Shikon shards he possessed glowed a deep black color. It was then that Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru saw Kagome, Hekele, and Rin's shards glow black in his other hand. Naraku put the pieces together and they fused into a nearly whole Shikon no Tama. The only shards that were missing were the ones in Koga's legs, the one still in Sesshoumaru's palm, and the other two that Miroku possessed. Five pieces left for Naraku to get in order to have the whole thing...and he knew it.  
  
"These will prove quite useful, as will these," he said, motioning to the girls. He lashed out three of his appendages and wrapped them around the three. Inuyasha made move to slice at the appendages with his sword but Naraku tightened his hold on them, squeezing air out of the girls' lungs. Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru winced at the pained gasps that protruded from the unconscious girls' lips.  
  
"I'll be going now, and if you love them, you'll come for them...them and your other friends." With that, Naraku disappeared into a cloud of black towards the well, taking the girls with him. Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru ran out of the house and went down into the well after him.  
  
"Naraku's going after Sango and Kachie, we can't let him get them too!" Inuyasha yelled.  
  
"You think I do not realize this?!?" Sesshoumaru retaliated. When the two touched down on the other side of the well they leapt out and ran towards the village. But when they got there...they were too late.  
  
With Miroku, Sango, Kachie, Koga, and Shippo:  
  
It happened just as they were leaving the hut. Sango had grabbed her boomerang and Kachie had unsheathed her katana. They were the first two in action when a cry was heard from some of the villagers. They thrust open the door to the hut and were flung back by and immense force of wind. Sango crashed through the wall while Kachie flew back, knocking over a villager.  
  
Kagura smiled a grim smile, "I am sorry for this, truly." Another wave of wind was thrust from her fan and it dug into Kachie's shoulder.  
  
"KACHIE!!!" Koga yelled, running out of the hut and to her aid. Kagura sent a fierce wind at him, knocking him about thirty feet in the opposite direction. She then gently swept the now unconscious Kachie into her feather and floated to where Sango lay. Koga regained his footing and ran after her, only to be slashed in the chest with her fan. He groaned in pain as he hit the ground, hardly able to stand. Kagura smirked and continued to where Sango was as unconscious as Kachie.  
  
"Hmm, I must have sent her through the wall with a bit more force than needed, pity." She swept her up as well, totally unaware of the monk's presence when he crashed his staff into her head. Kagura stumbled back a few feet, clearly shocked.  
  
"If you make a move towards them again, you shall be sucked into my kazaana!" he yelled in anger, holding his arm at ready. Kagura gave him the same grim smile she had Kachie.  
  
"You are too close to them to unleash the kazaana; you will not use it. Understand that I must do this, and that you and your friends must come and save them, 'til then, good-bye!" she yelled, hitting him with her wind and gathering herself into the feather with the fallen girls. She rose high above Miroku and flew towards the mountains.  
  
I hope they pass Naraku's tests...if they don't I'll never escape him and claim freedom for Kanna and myself...she thought, somewhat sadly, as she flew off, purposely making it easier for the hanyou to track her by going slower than normal.  
  
Back at the village:  
  
"What the hell happened here?!? Tell me!!!" Inuyasha grabbed the first non-fatally wounded man he saw and nearly shook the life out of him. Sesshoumaru sniffed the air.  
  
"The wind witch was here...if you'd be so rational as to use your nose, you would know that." Inuyasha glared at him and put the man down. He and Sesshoumaru sped to Kaede's hut, only to find a semi-conscious Koga and a bewildered Miroku. Inuyasha ran over to them quickly. Sesshoumaru followed cautiously, glancing around for any sign that Kagura was still nearby.  
  
"Where are they?!" Inuyasha yelled, "Where are Sango and Kachie?!?!" At this Koga looked at the ground in shame and Miroku, after in taking a sharp and labored breath, looked up at Inuyasha.  
  
"Kagura...has taken them to Naraku...it wasn't him you smelled near the well..."  
  
"Actually, it was. Naraku has discovered how to travel through the well to the future...he has taken Kagome, Rin, and Hekele as well..." Sesshoumaru stated, also looking at the ground in shame. He had let Naraku take Rin away from him yet again, now he also had Hekele...  
Inuyasha watched as Sesshoumaru's face turned even more grim. He once again lightly touched the necklace he had received, not aware of his half-brother's gaze. Inuyasha, knowing well how he and the others felt, was the first to speak.  
  
"What do you think he wants them for?" he asked. Sesshoumaru glanced at Miroku and Koga, who nodded slowly.  
  
"Inuyasha...Naraku has been plotting something against us..." Miroku began, only to be interrupted.  
  
"Feh, when isn't he?"  
  
"Listen Inuyasha, Naraku summoned Sesshoumaru to a secret meeting just after Hekele and Kagome went back to their time a day before Kachie arrived. He was trying to get Sesshoumaru to assist him, which he obviously is not. Sesshoumaru refused because he no longer wanted the Tetsusaiga. Naraku then made him a victim of his plot because he assumed that Sesshoumaru would warn us...which he did. We believe that is why-"  
  
"Why wasn't I told of this?" Inuyasha asked suddenly, glaring at the three before him. Miroku sighed and shifted uncomfortably. Sesshoumaru nodded for him to continue and moved towards Inuyasha, just in case he turned violent.  
  
"...We didn't tell you because we didn't know how to...because Kikyo was at the meeting as well...and she agreed to help Naraku...Inuyasha...she betrayed you..." Miroku said slowly and deliberately. Inuyasha was about to lung at the monk the instant he finished speaking but Sesshoumaru held him back. Inuyasha began struggling and yelling at Miroku.  
  
"NO SHE DIDN'T! KIKYO HATES NARAKU!!!!!!!! SHE WOULD NEVER, NO MATTER HOW MUCH SHE DESPISES ME, HELP NARAKU!!!!!" he practically screamed in rage. Sesshoumaru held him firm, which proved to be surprisingly difficult.  
  
"Inuyasha, you worthless half-breed, you've been deceived!" he said in an enraged tone, "Do you think they would lie to you?!?" Inuyasha stopped struggling for a moment and breathed deeply.  
  
"No...they wouldn't...but you would..." he said in a low, hateful tone. This surprised Sesshoumaru. He had never told a lie to convince an enemy to trust him, (though he had never tried to get an enemy to trust him before.) The only real lies that he had ever told were small fibs to keep Rin oblivious to some of the more gruesome things he was involved with, wanting to spare her innocence from such evils. Lord Sesshoumaru of the Western Lands did not lie.  
  
"I have never lied to you. No matter the circumstances, the few good or the more often bad, I have never lied to you...why would I lie now, when I have more than enough reasons not to?" he hissed angrily. He let go of Inuyasha, no longer seeing the monk to be in physical danger. Inuyasha turned to look him in the eye, and Sesshoumaru was appalled to see the accusation written inside of his half-brother's eyes. His own eye's turned slightly cold.  
  
"You are not the only being to have had something precious stolen from you this day...Koga, the damn monk, and I have as well...what reason would there be for that if I were to be lying?" he asked. Inuyasha glared at him.  
  
"If you were to help Naraku, I'm sure that he would keep Rin safe for you..." he accused. Sesshoumaru grabbed Inuyasha's throat in anger and held him off the ground slightly. He looked into the hanyou's eyes with both disgust and anger.  
  
"You propose that I would allow Rin, a being that is most like my own child, to even come within seeing distance of such a creature as Naraku? And what of Hekele? Are you accusing her to be involved with this somehow? She bled on Kagome's wall from a head injury, Inuyasha, I doubt she had any part in such a plan!" he said in the lowest most forceful voice he could muster. Inuyasha looked away from him at the ground and Sesshoumaru put him down, a slight blaze burning in his icy eyes.  
  
"Um...if you two are done fighting..." Everyone looked down to see a ragged looking Shippo pop his head out of a bit of the hut's rubble. Miroku cautiously removed him from the destroyed hut and looked him over for any injuries.  
  
"Are you hurt Shippo?" he asked, subconsciously keeping an eye on Inuyasha. Shippo shook his head but hugged Miroku's neck.  
  
"Can we go find Kagome now? We have to get her back!" he exclaimed sadly, looking at Inuyasha, his only father figure. Inuyasha glared a final glare at Sesshoumaru, Koga, and Miroku, and then out stretched his arms towards Shippo a bit, signalling for him to come to the hanyou. Miroku hesitated but allowed Shippo to jump into Inuyasha's arms.  
  
Inuyasha, knowing that he should comfort the kit who was in many ways his own kit it seemed, spoke in as soothing a tone as he could, "Yes, we'll go and find her now, her, Kachie, Hekele, Rin, and Sango..." He actually stroked Shippo's hair as he had seen Kagome do to calm him. Seeing the surprised looks from his 'companions', Inuyasha cleared his throat and looked down at the kit.  
  
"Kid...you can't come." Suddenly Shippo's eyes became pools fueled by endless streams as he looked up at Inuyasha.  
  
"B-but, I gotta help save Kagome!!! Please Inuyasha?!?!?" he pleaded over and over. Inuyasha shook his head.  
  
"I'm gonna catch-up to the hag and have her keep you safe while the rest of us go after the girls, don't worry...we will save them..." he said reassuringly. Shippo hugged Inuyasha tightly, surprising everyone in the area.  
  
"Ok...but you had better make sure that you and Kagome don't die like my mom and dad..." Shippo's voice shook with tears he was desperately trying to hold in. Inuyasha hugged the kit back and, after giving a slight nod to the others, ran towards where he could still smell Kaede's aged scent.  
  
Kikyo did not betray me...but Sesshoumaru wouldn't lie either...no matter what it involved...I don't know what to think...Inuyasha pondered as he ran on. He could feel Shippo clinging to his haori and gave him a small, reassuring squeeze. Right now I gotta get the kit to Kaede and let her know what's happened...I swear Kagome...I'll find you...  
  
With Naraku:  
  
He watched from Kanna's mirror as the first of the girls began to awaken. Sango's eyes opened slowly and Naraku loved the completely fearful expression that resided in them. He watched as she began to struggle and squirm against her bindings with an evil grin.  
  
"She will never escape..she and her friends will be my puppets and I am the puppettier in this game I have devised..."  
  
"Naraku..." a strong yet very feminine voice resounded behind him. Naraku's grin broadened as he turned to Kikyo.  
  
"Yes my dear?" He smirked as Kikyo shot him a look for the pet name he had developed a habit of using on her.  
  
Containing her anger, Kikyo smiled back at him, "Is it time to baffle our enemies?" Naraku wrapped a firm and superior arm around the dead Miko.  
  
"Yes, my dear...it is." Kikyo glared at him but nodded. Naraku ran his fingers through her silky hair and inhaled it's earthy and spicey scent. It was quite an invigorating smell. Kikyo pulled out of the embrace and turned to Naraku.  
  
"I'll ahead of you to await them...do not be long...darling..." she spat the last word and Naraku's grin returned. He watched as Kikyo methodically walked away until she disappeared into her own dark cloud. He then returned his gaze to see the girl Kachie awake in the dungeon next to Sango.  
  
"Oh the fun we shall have..."  
  
With Kikyo:  
  
"I am NOT Naraku's puppet...I will NOT be pushed around by an inferior hanyou like him...I am NOT going to sit back and allow him to treat me like a piece of food that he can nibble at will...I am NOT his whore...and I am definately NOT as needy and weak as he believes...he shall see my power soon...him and Inuyasha..." Kikyo spat as she appeared in the clearing of a nearby forest that she knew Inuyasha and his companions would be passing through. She was totally enraged at how he was treating her like she was his. All she had done was use his proposed alliance to her advantage, had allowed him to be near her for more than a few moments, and he had assumed that it was is priviledge, no, his right to treat her like she belonged to him...this, she would NOT allow.  
  
"I will play your game for now Naraku...but be warned...you will lose!"  
  
With Inuyasha and Company:  
  
It had taken about twenty minutes of running for Inuyasha to catch up to Kaede and tell her about the group's recent situation. She had been heart-broken when she heard of the kidnapping of the girls that were much like her own and decided to return to the village and help with it's reconstruction and to await the return of Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru, Koga, and Miroku, hopefully with the girls. Kagura had done much damage. Kaede had also readily taken Shippo, who still wanted to come with Inuyasha to find Kagome and the others. That transaction had taken another five minutes alone before Inuyasha promised him once again that he would find and save Kagome. He had then sped off back to the village to meet up with the rest of his comrades, which had taken another twenty minutes...entirely too long.  
Sesshoumaru had made the discovery that Kagura's scent was unusually strong heading towards the mountains, meaning that she had flown slowly. This had puzzled the group but, as it was their only lead, they had folowed it quickly. Miroku was riding on Kirara, as was Jakken, who Sesshoumaru wanted to be nearby so that Rin could be taken to safety once she was freed. Inuyasha, Koga, and Sesshoumaru were running as fast as they could towards Kagura's scent, Kirara wasn't far behind.  
  
"Inuyasha, Kagura said that she had to kidnap Kachie and Sango and that we were to come and save them, do you think that she purposely made this easy for us?" Koga said, having heard what the wind witch had said to Miroku earlier. Inuyasha grimaced.  
  
"Naraku said something similar, he said that if we loved them...we would come for them..."  
  
"There is no doubt in my mind that he wishes for us to find him. We are walking right into a trap," Sesshoumaru stated. Inuyasha growled at him.  
  
"Are you saying that we shouldn't be looking for them?!?" he yelled. Sesshoumaru's eyes tinged with red as he responded.  
  
"I am coming as well am I not?!? What choice do we have?! I was merely stating that we should be ready for anything!!!" he growled back. Koga growled at them both.  
  
"Now's not the time for one of your feuds you two, maybe after we save the-" he froze in mid-step, sniffing the air, and growled a deep and low growl. Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha froze as well. Kirara made up what little distance she had lost and sniffed the air once she did. She too growled. Inuyasha was the only one who wasn't disappointed.  
  
"Kikyo..." he said, his previous thoughts returning to him. Sesshoumaru growled as well as the dead miko's scent reached his nose.  
  
"Inuyasha...now is not the time to run off and beg for forgiveness...she betrayed you!" Koga stated angrily. Sesshoumaru and Miroku nodded, each getting ready for an explosion. Then, before Inuyasha could react, another, more hateful smell reached their noses.  
  
"Naraku is near her..." Sesshoumaru said testily. Inuyasha grimaced as he proccessed the information.  
  
This does not mean that she betrayed me... he told himself. Without thinking, he sped into the direction of her scent, needing reassurance. He would not make his prescence known unless he had to.  
  
"Inuyasha you idiot!" Koga yelled, running after him. Sesshoumaru followed.  
  
"Stay here monk!" he yelled as Miroku made move to follow. He nodded and stayed on Kirara.  
  
Inuyasha...why do I get the gut feeling that you are walking into a trap?!? You are much too rash!  
  
With Naraku:  
  
He watched from another clearing through Kanna's mirror as Inuyasha appeared in the bushed near Kikyo. How delicious, this shall throw their little group for a while. He thought. When he saw Sesshoumaru and the wolf prince Koga appear near him he grinned. Perfect, now to make my move...  
  
With Kikyo:  
  
She glanced out of the corner or her eye when she heard Inuyasha walk into the bushes. She pretended not to notice and continued her gaze to the sky from the tree she had decided to wait in. Her soul stealers were flying about her and she had let her hair down so that it fell about her in a messy fashion. If she was going to pull this off, it had to look like it was completely unexpected. She had decided to make it look as though she was resting. She sensed Naraku nearby and knew he was ready. She intook a breath and sighed.  
  
Here we go...hope those idiots don't see through it. If Inuyasha saw through the plot then when he came to Naraku's palace to rescue Kagome the plan would have a serious dent in it...it was the only part that Kikyo was the least bit wary of.  
  
Suddeny, Naraku burst through the trees and sailed one of his appendages at her with such speed that even if she had wanted to Kikyo would have had trouble dodging it. It wrapped itself around her and brought her to the hanyou's face, which twisted into a victorious snarl.  
  
Apparently he is taking this seriously as well... "Naraku you bastard!" she 'tried' to scream as she squirmed against his hold on her. Just then, Inuyasha flew out of the bushes, just as planned, and attempted to save her.  
  
"Naraku! Let her go!" he yelled, comming at them with such speed that Kikyo almost feared that he would save her. But Naraku was one step ahead and dodged the blow.  
  
He summoned a cloud of black and stepped into it, "Ah, Inuyasha, can you not save anyone you love?" he taunted. As the two began to disappear into the cloud Kikyo purposely looked to Inuyeasha and screamed.  
  
"INUYASHAAAAA!" And then they were gone.  
  
With Inuyasha:  
  
He ran to where the black cloud was but it was too late. Naraku and Kikyo had disappeared. Inuyasha rounded on Sesshoumaru and Koga.  
  
"Do you see?!? She did NOT betray me!!! Now she is gone as well!" he yelled. Koga looked to Sesshoumaru and once Inuyasha turned his head, shrugged and gave him a questioning look. Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed in thought. Either this was an astoundingly played portion of the plot, or Kikyo had merely pretended to help Naraku. At this point, both seemed rather likely. Inuyasha sped back to where he could smell Kagura's still lingering scent and took off. Sesshoumaru and Koga followed quickly and filled in Miroku as they went. He was quite surprised.  
  
"You say Kikyo was just taken by Naraku? What is this, some kind of trick?" he asked. Sesshoumaru and Koga grimaced as they ran with Kirara by their side.  
  
"...Perhaps...I certainly hope not for Inuyasha's sake, but I am almost positive it is a trick..." Sesshoumaru said. Koga nodded.  
  
"But still, we cannot be sure...it seemed almost too well planned to be an accident, but one could say the same for the alternative..." he added.  
  
"Hurry up you guys! We've got to find them!!!" Inuyasha yelled. The group nodded and sped up their pace. Naraku was definately up to something bigger than they had originally thought...they only hoped that they were ready for it.  
  
With the girls:  
  
Sango nursed Hekele's head while Kachie tried to bandage Kagome's stomach wound. Rin had woken up just a while after Kachie and was followed by Kagome an hour later. It had taken Hekele at least two hours after that to regain consciousness due to her head injury.  
Rin was sitting next to Hekele with her little arms wrapped around the older girl's waist for comfort. Hekele was absentmindedly stroking her hair, which had fallen out of its pig-tails. Sango was cleaning the cut on her head with some of the water that had been there when the girls had woken up. After a minute's worth of examining Sango had determined that it wasn't stagnent and it was safe to use on her companions' wounds. Kagome's wound, which Kachie was now finishing up with, hadn't bled very much, it was only a small cut and easy to tend to. Hekele's cut had been just as small, but it had also bled much more because it was on her head. She felt quite light headed and weak, but she tried not to let it show as Sango finished using a piece of cloth from her oversized shirt to bandage the wound.  
  
"Thank you Sango-chan," Hekele said, using -chan to add meaning to her words. Sango smiled and sat back, nodding. She looked over to Kachie and Kagome with concern.  
  
"How is the wound?" she asked. Kagome smiled reassuringly.  
  
"It hurts, but it's ok...how about Hekele?" she questioned. Hekele turned to regard her.  
  
"I'm a bit dizzy, to be honest, but other than that I am fine," she then turned to Sango, "Do you or Kachie have any injuries?" she asked.  
  
Kachie spoke up, making a reluctant Hekele turn her head once more, "I have a huge cut on my shoulder, but Sango already bandaged that up for me when I woke up." Hekele's eyes got wide but Kachie swatted at her worry. "I'm ok, it's not as bad as it looks."  
Hekele nodded and turned her attention to Rin. She pulled the girl into her lap and began to re-braid her hair as neatly as she could without a brush. The young girl happily let her, feeling more at ease now tht everyone was awake and at least a little better off than they were at first.  
  
Kagome watched the two and a thought came to her mind, "What do you think they want us for?" Hekele shrugged and shook her head, wincing as she did.  
  
"I don't know...knowing how movies with stuff like this happening in it we are bait...but that's just a teenage, movie watching, idiot's guess..." she said as she continued to braid Rin's hair. Kagome smirked.  
  
"Knowing our luck and Naraku's evil mind...you're probably right..." she said.  
  
"Actually, you are very right." The girls snapped their heads in the direction of the voice and saw, emerging from the gate of their cell, Kanna. Kagome's eyes turned hard as she looked at the demon child.  
  
"And why are you here? Come to collect us?" she spat, not feeling the fear she knew she should. Kanna shook her head.  
  
"I am here to warn you."  
  
"Warn us?!? It's a little late to be warning us!" Sango yelled. Kanna actually gave her an apologetic look.  
  
"Naraku will be coming for you all in a few minutes, so Kagura sent me before he did so that I could try and help with what informatin we have." This grabbed the group's attention.  
  
"Why didn't she come herself?" Kachie asked, realizing that this was Naraku's other incarnate that she had barely even heard mention of. Kanna graced her with an answer.  
  
"Kagura's scent would have been detected by Naraku when he came to retrieve you, and since I have no scent, she sent me."  
  
"What information do you have that can help us?" Hekele asked, diving right into Kanna's point.  
  
Kanna shot her a grateful yet blank expression and nodded, "Naraku has collected you as bait, as you have guessed. He intends to lure Inuyasha, the Wolf Prince, the Lord of the Western Lands, and the Buddhist Monk here. It has become plainly obvious through what he has witnessed through my mirror that they each hold great affection for each of you, perhaps even love. He has collected most of the Shikon no Tama and has turned it evil. He used this evil jewel to create four new dimensions in which he will place all of you to await your respected male, but along with you will be something to tempt or confuse them. If, and only if, you are chosen above the temptation or confusion will either of you escape the dimension..."  
  
"So he is testing our love..." Kagome said, suddenly knowing where Kikyo fit into the web. Kanna nodded.  
  
"He wants to see you and your love suffer...be warned, even if you make it out of the dimensions..he will still remain. The final battle is upon you."  
  
"And what about you and Kagura, whose side are you on?" Kachie asked. Kanna gave her a pained look.  
  
"Naraku holds our hearts and my soul in his hands, if we disobey him...Kagura and I shall perish. We do what we can to help you, but until we are free, this is all we can do..."  
  
"So in other words, until you are no longer under his control, you are on both sides," Hekele stated. Kanna nodded.  
  
"I must be going now...that is all the information Kagura and I have, other than that we will be at the final battle, please know that we do not wish to serve our master, but must." With those words, Kanna disappeared. The group of girls looked to each other in fear and uncertainty.  
  
"Do you think we can prove to them that we love them?" Hekele asked, looking more at Kagome than anyone else. Kagome hung her head and sighed.  
  
"I don't know...I told Inuyasha that I loved him last night...and he said that he loved me...but with Kikyo in on this...I can't help but know that she'll be his temptation...and I don't know what he will do..." The girl began to cry and Hekele wrapped an arm around her in comfort as she continued to hold Rin in her lap. Their cell was relatively small, so everyone was close to each other. Sango hugged her friend tightly and sighed.  
  
"...At least Inuyasha knows how you feel, none of us have confessed how much we cared."  
  
"I wonder where Rin fits in here?" Hekele wondered aloud. Kachie shrugged sadly.  
  
"I don't know...but we know that she will be with you and Sesshoumaru, so she'll be safe ok? Sesshoumaru wouldn't let anything happen to her..." she tried to sound soothing but her voice cracked. In her eyes were unshed tears.  
  
"I don't know what happened to my usually secluded self, but ever since I met everyone here I've been more emotional than usual...and despite how few days I've known him...I think I've fallen for Koga. I don't know what he will do when presented with me and a temptation..." she said. Rin crawled out of Hekele's lap and gave her a hug.  
  
"Rin thinks that everyone will choose right and that everyone has more love than they think they do. Rin knows that everyone will be ok..." the small group smiled at the youngest of them and her attempt to reassure them.  
  
It was then that Naraku appeared.  
  
After surveying the fearful look in the girls' eyes he smirked, "It is time..." Suddenly a black light surrounded the group and they were gone. Naraku grinned as he thought of their faces and he transported himself to the reception room of his palace. He placed himself on the fancy tatami mat just as his guests made their loud entrance.  
  
With the boys:  
  
Inuyasha had run even faster than before once he saw Naraku's palace. Yes, it was quite obvious that Naraku had wanted them to find him. Any other time they went to look for his fortress it was surrounded by a barrier that made it invisible, but now it was so plainly before the group that it was almost annoying...taunting even.  
Despite the fact that Inuyasha was a hanyou, his anger, anticipation, and fear for his loved ones made his speed greater than what one could have thought capable of him. Sesshoumaru and Koga were surprised, but again, when the fortress came into view, even Kirara's speed more than seemed to double.  
There were no guards, no one to stop them from entering the palace, and they were glad for the lack of even a tiny delay. No one spoke words of assurance, encouragement, anger, or fear. No one spoke period. What was there to say? They followed Naraku's disgusting scent to a set of gigantic doors. Everyone's face hardened a number of notches as they drew their weapons and prepared to break the damn door open, whether it was locked or not.  
With an almost sickening crash they flew through the door, hate plastered on all of their faces. There he was. The object of everyone's hate, the reason for all of their emotional turmoil, the one who had led them to what they knew could possibly be their own death and not his...Naraku. He was sitting calmly on a luxurious tatami mat with an indifferent expression on his naturally pale face. He glanced up at them and graced them with a smirk as he picked up a cup of tea.  
  
"What noisy guests I have...I heard you coming a mile away...literally..." he said, sipping from his cup. Sesshoumaru growled and unleashed his poison whip, slicing the cup in half in Naraku's hand. Naraku glanced at him as the hot tea spilled on his hand and arm, annoyed.  
  
"...and rude as well I see...Fine then, if you want to get down to buisness so soon..." he said, standing up. The group stood at ready; even Miroku showed no fear. Jakken stood at ready as well...behind Kirara.  
  
"Yes, Naraku, let's. Where are the girls?!" Inuyasha yelled, pointing his Tetsusaiga at Naraku. Naraku took a step towards the group but no one flinched.  
  
"I will get to that...but first..." he said, taking the nearly complete Shikon no Tama. It was as Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru had last seen it hours black. Naraku grinned in an almost psychotic fashion as it glowed an equally black shade. The shards in Miroku's robes flew towards Naraku as did the one in Sesshoumaru's. Koga screamed in pain as the two shards in his legs ripped through his muscle and skin. He kneeled on the ground as his legs began to bleed heavily. The shards all sailed to Naraku and his grin did not lose its fire as the shards fused into one, complete, Shikon no Tama. Miroku cautiously made move to help Koga stand but he was brushed aside as Koga forced his legs to work.  
  
"Naraku you bastard..." he managed to growl as he resumed his battle stance. Inuyasha spared him a small glance of concern but then returned his gaze to Naraku.  
  
"...It seems that with the majority of the shards...I could call others to me...useful little quirk, isn't it?" Naraku mused as he twirled the black jewel in his hand.  
  
For once Inuyasha didn't care about the jewel, he would worry about that later, "Naraku...where are the girls?!" Miroku stepped up beside him, as did Sesshoumaru and a now limping Koga. Kirara stayed by Jakken, aware that her job was to get Rin and the toad to safety once they were found. She wasn't to risk getting hurt. It was an understood, yet unspoken order.  
  
Naraku smiled and, allowing the jewel's power to flow through him, his eyes glowed from red to black, "They are waiting for you..." Suddenly, four dark portals formed below the group of heros and they were swallowed instantly, one or two with a yelp of surprise. When the portals disappeared, Naraku grinned.  
  
"Kikyo..." he called, and the dead miko appeared behind him instantly.  
  
"Is it done?" she asked darkly. Naraku nodded.  
  
"Yes my dear...they are being sent to the dimensions as we speak."  
  
"Shall we go to Inuyasha then? My heart aches for his to break..." she said. Naraku grinned.  
  
"Not quite yet...let us see how some of the others fair first..."  
  
Me- DUM DA DUM DUM  
  
Kachie- DUM DA DUM DUM...DA DUM!!!  
  
Sango- You just had to have us kidnapped and stuck into fake dimensions to await our doom-I mean, loyal loves...  
  
Kagome- Yeah...you evil person you...  
  
Rin- As long as Rin and Hekele-chan live you guys can rot in Hades for all Rin cares...  
  
Everyone- Gasps at Rin's rude, mean, and hateful comment Rin! That was mean!!! Who told you to say that?  
  
Rin- Points at Inuyasha  
  
Kagome- INUYASHA!!!  
  
Inuyasha- looks at Kagome and runs over to hug her, but before he gets there...  
  
Kagome- SIT!!!  
  
Inuyasha- On instinct falls to the ground and forms a crater  
  
Kagome- Umm, I forgot that I took the rosary off...wow...I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks...  
  
Me- Ok then...well, down to business...  
  
Kachie- Yeah...the next four chapters are going to feature one couple each, and the events that occur in the  
dimension that they are stuck in. That's one reason that they will be extra short...  
  
Kagome- And the other reason that they will be short is that if the reviewers wish her to, Hekele is going to try and  
write the next four chapters as individual song fics, using songs that fit each couple and their situation IF she  
can find a good song....  
  
Sango- Also, Hekele needs to know which couple the reviewers think should go first, her and Sesshoumaru, or Kachie  
and Koga.  
  
Rin- Hekele-chan wants Sango-san and Miroku-sama to go second, and Kagome-san and Inuyasha-san to go  
last...for order of events purposes. So Hekele-chan needs to know which of the OTHER couples you want to go  
first. The loser will go third...but that doesn't mean that they aren't important!!!  
  
Me- That's right Rin, even though Inuyasha and Kagome WILL be last, they are the MOST important couple, and  
their 'short chapter' will be longer than the other short ones. Please, no flames on what I chose to do with the  
order...I have plot purposes to work with here...you won't be disappointed.  
  
Kachie- So vote Y/N on song fics AND on Hekele/Sesshoumaru or Kachie/Koga chapter to be first...remember, you  
have the power...sort of...  
  
Kagome- Be prepared for a tide-turning twist in 5 chapters.  
  
Sango- And wish Hekele luck while driving out west...  
  
Rin- Pray too, she nearly crashed this Saturday while driving to her grandparents house with her mommy...  
  
Me- HEY! I JUST GOT MY PERMIT!!! BE NICE YOU TWO!!!  
  
Sango and Rin- Whispers She says it wasn't her fault but it was...so pray and don't be upset if you get an e-mail from  
Kachie saying she's dead and that she is taking over the story...  
  
Me- I HEARD THAT!!!!!!!! Ok, also, if you want to know what the 'plot twist' is, review things that Kikyo says to  
Naraku from between now and two chapters back...and put them together with information provided about the  
Shikon no Tama in THIS chapter...I would be more specific, but I want my reviewers to have at least a little bit of  
a challenge. Once you figure out the connection, try to figure out what it means...anyone who does will get the next  
chapter dedicated to them.  
  
Kagome- Also, the 100th. reviewer will get special honors in the next chapter...and, if Hekele lives through her  
vacation, perhaps a drawing sent through an e- mail as a prize.  
  
Kachie- To see some of her artwork, go to and search under the screen name  
HekeleMasuyo...good-bye and enjoy!  
  
Everyone- UNTIL NEXT CHAPPIE!!! ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
P.S. ..............R&R.................... 


	12. Crystal, Blood, and a Test of Recognitio...

Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Well, I am home, intact, and not dead because of a car accident...although I did almost collide with a semi while it was raining super, super hard and was going about 50 mph...I swear I checked my blind- spot, but it was raining so hard that I didn't see it...and nearly got a semi in my front door...lovely, yeah, I chose not to drive much after that...though my dad kept urging me to do so. That was on day ONE of my trip...  
  
Nicole, you are my 100th reviewer!!! This chapter is dedicated to you! Thank you very much for enjoying my story and telling me so. Please send me your e-mail address in a review or via my personal e-mail so that I can send you a picture of my own creation!!!!! Please send it within one week of the date this chapter was posted or I will be forced to give the "prize" to my 101st reviewer. My e-mail address is   
  
Well, only a couple of you wanted song fics...so this isn't going to be one. This is my Hekele/Sesshoumaru chapter, poor Kachie and Koga only got about three or four votes...and oddly enough, Kachie, my best friend, was one of the people voting for Hekele/Sesshoumaru, so...I guess you guys like that pairing...OK THEN!  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing but Hekele and my own devious plot.  
  
Crystal, Blood, and a Test of Recognition  
  
Sesshoumaru's POV:  
  
Sesshoumaru stood slowly and glanced at his surroundings. He was outside an oddly designed palace of some sort. It was tall and had many towers, and looked very majestic. It was made of pure, delicate crystal. Groping at his side for his sword he realized that he only felt one. Looking around at the ground uneasily he saw his Tenseiga. It was glowing a dark black color, as the Shikon no Tama had been.  
  
It would not be wise to use this...Naraku has put a curse on it...he has a reason to be sure...but why... He looked up and saw as the front gates opened and guessed that he was meant to enter the palace. He gently tried to lift his sword and was happy that none of whatever the curse's effects were had harmed him. He sniffed the air as he walked towards the gate at a cautious pace.  
  
Why can I not smell anything? He wondered as he glanced once more at his surroundings. He had landed in a field with many different flowers...he should have been able to smell them...  
  
Sesshoumaru passed through the front gates with ease but held the hilt of his sword cautiously nonetheless. Then something Naraku had said before he had been sucked through his portal hit him.  
  
"'They are waiting for you.' Hekele and Rin must be here..." he said aloud yet to himself as he glanced around, wondering where he should begin to look. He froze as a door near him opened. He looked to it and saw that it was a staircase to one of the towers.  
  
"Am I being led to...or away from them?" he wondered. He stared long and hard at the tower, both wanting to go in and at the same time it gave him an uneasy feeling, causing him not to be sure.  
  
"This, if it does lead to them, is no doubt a trap within a trap. Naraku wanted to split us up...why though...what is the purpose?" he said to himself, as though his questions would be answered if they were spoken aloud.  
  
"This is my only clue, I may as well take this route for now..." Taking one more look at his surroundings, Sesshoumaru cautiously proceeded towards the tower.  
  
Hekele's POV:  
  
Hekele moaned as she opened her eyes. She had been knocked out again, twice in one day...how lovely. She stared at the ceiling for a moment, almost wishing for sleep to claim her once more, as it would be refuge from the pain she felt in her head. She sat up slowly and realized then just how cold it was. She wrapped her arms about herself in an attempt to keep warm as she looked around at her surroundings. Hekele was in a room of some sort...in a cell that looked to be made of extremely thick glass; she also noticed that she was chained to the floor on a rather short chain. Hekele idly wondered why she needed to be chained to the ground when it was apparent that she would not be able to get out. She touched the wall of her cell, and found it to be freezing cold. As she took her hand away from the wall she could see just a bit of water trickling down her fingers.  
  
"Ice...but...how?" she said as she looked through her cell out a window. She could see a warm looking sun and a clear blue sky, and she swore she could see a meadow below.  
  
"I must be somewhere high...but where?" It was then that she recalled what Kanna had said about Naraku having most of the Shikon no Tama and using it to create four new dimensions. Hekele sighed and, despite the cold, leaned back against the 'wall' of her cell. Sesshoumaru would be coming soon, for her and Rin, and Hekele couldn't help but wonder what he would have to overcome to rescue them, a temptation, or a confusion. Then she realized something.  
  
"Rin!" The girl was nowhere to be seen. Hekele searched the room for her frantically, but couldn't find her.  
  
"Don't worry, she's nearby, just out of the light, that's all..." came a sadistic voice; it belonged to a woman. Hekele looked around again but saw nothing. Was the voice in her head?  
  
"Very good human, I am telepathic...I am speaking to you through your mind...do not worry about the child, she is fine for now..." said the voice. Hekele cringed and looked around.  
  
"Where is she!" she yelled, suddenly fearing for the young girl she had come to care for as a sister...or daughter even.  
  
"You really must speak up human, I cannot hear your voice through these walls...nor will the demon lord when he arrives..." the voice taunted her. The shadows in the room receded slightly and Hekele could see a cell identical to her own on the other side of the room. But it was what was in the cell that frightened her. The women smiled evilly and her eyes shone red before turning to an icy blue. They both turned their heads as they heard footsteps coming towards the door.  
  
"He comes..." the voice said before the entire room was cast in shadows.  
  
Hekele's eyes shone slightly with tears she tried to not allow fall, "Please Sesshoumaru...know me..."  
  
Sesshoumaru's POV:  
  
Sesshoumaru quickened his pace as he went up the stairs. He knew he was drawing nearer to the top...and he was becoming increasingly positive that at least one of the females he cared for would be awaiting him there. Worry was setting in, not only for Rin but for Hekele as well. Something told him that things were not quite as easy as they seemed...  
Sesshoumaru saw the door at the top of the stairs and rushed to it, sword drawn. When he got to the door he sliced it in half, leaving a large opening through which he entered the room. Red flickered dangerously in his eyes and his demon markings were as threatening as they could be as he scanned the black room for either of his loved ones.  
  
"Ahh, so the demon lord took the bait and came looking for his weak humans..." came a voice much like Naraku's from the shadows. Sesshoumaru turned and saw, appearing out of a cloud of black, one of Naraku's puppets.  
  
"Where are they puppet? I know they are near here!" he almost shouted, enraged. The puppet snapped his fingers and light shone on two cells opposite each other and Sesshoumaru's eyes widened. There, in both cells, was Hekele. They looked exactly alike in both dress and physical appearance, both with their right ankle chained to the floor, and both looking at him with pained eyes that almost begged him to recognize them.  
  
"You must choose who is the real girl...and you have no room to fumble...the wrong choice will cause your real love to perish...and seeing as you cannot use your life giving sword..." the puppet trailed off, clearly enjoying the way the demon lord kept looking at both of the girls in a somewhat confused and even pained manner.  
Sesshoumaru looked at them both for a moment wishing for one of them to do something out of character so that he would be able to choose the correct Hekele. He studied one of them for a long moment and took a step towards her.  
  
Hekele's POV:  
  
Hekele's heart skipped a beat when she saw Sesshoumaru take a step towards her cell. He knew her! He didn't need to hear her speak, he didn't need to hear the context of her thoughts, and he didn't really even need to think about it...he just knew her!  
  
"Don't be so certain human..." came that voice again. The puppet began to speak.  
  
"Are you certain she is your love? Remember...the wrong choice will send her to the world of the dead...as will it this one..." Hekele saw Sesshoumaru turn in time to see the shadows disappear completely and reveal Rin, lying motionless, on a pedestal. She watched in fear for the child as Sesshoumaru rushed to her side and, when he tried to touch her, was repelled by a shield.  
  
Sesshoumaru's POV:  
  
"What are you saying puppet?!" He shouted at the fake Naraku, enraged once more.  
  
The puppet smiled, "If you choose incorrectly, both your love, and your young child, will die...and the child shall not awaken until you choose..." Sesshoumaru's eyes turned completely blood red as he growled at the puppet, hate and anger laced throughout it.  
  
"You will die if you do not release them both..." he said in an icy calm. The puppet merely shrugged.  
  
"Do I care? I was made to die at your hands demon lord..." Sesshoumaru growled and turned his line of vision at the Hekele he had be convinced was the real one...now he suddenly wasn't so sure. The fake Hekele was obviously able to see into the mind of the real Hekele, or else she would not be able to mimic her every body movement to perfection. Every movement one girl made, the other made at the exact same second, perfectly. There was no physical way to distinguish between them...but he had a gut feeling he knew who was real...the question was, was it worth trusting? There were two lives on the line, and both lives happened to mean a great deal to him...who was he to choose?  
  
"Oh, and demon lord? You don't have all day..." with that, the puppet snapped his fingers and Sesshoumaru instinctively turned back to the two girls, afraid of what may happen to them. At first he saw nothing.  
  
Hekele's POV:  
  
Hekele felt something begin to pour onto her head a moment or so after Naraku's puppet had snapped his fingers. She looked up, and screamed. Blood. Blood was pouring out of an opening above her head on the ceiling in large amounts. Hekele tried to go to another part of the cell so that she could get away from it pouring on her but found her chain so short that she couldn't move. Suddenly she realized what the reason for the chain was...she wasn't supposed to move. The blood would fill the cell and once it was over her head...she would drown in it. There was no buying time by floating above the thick red liquid...  
Hekele could reach the wall of her cell from where she stood and she pounded on it and yelled for help. She was truly afraid now, for both herself and Rin, but the fear she held for herself had become apparent when the blood had begun to flow into the room. God there was so much of it...and it was as cold as the walls...  
She was freezing and drowning; fear gripped at her heart more than it ever had in her entire life. More than when her mother died, more than when she was almost killed that same night, more than when she knew she was dying as the tiger demon pressed his clawed foot into her burnt back...yes, this was much worse...  
She continued to beat at the walls and call for Sesshoumaru, though her fists were beginning to hurt. Tears were now falling from her eyes but it was hard to tell with all of the blood pouring on her. She glanced at the creature who was pretending to be her and saw that every move she made was being mimicked. Frustrated, she called to Sesshoumaru once again.  
  
"He can't hear you human, nor can he smell you...just take death with grace!" the voice said to her in an annoyed tone, though when Hekele looked at her face she saw the same terror as what she was sure was on her own.  
  
She's mimicking me...she's seeing what I am going to do in my mind and she does it at the same time...  
  
"Ooh, you are bright aren't you? Too bad he can't see through it hmm?" the voice mocked her. Hekele looked at the pool of frigid blood, knowing it may very well be her grave. She didn't notice when Sesshoumaru destroyed the puppet out of anger, she didn't notice when he stood before them, confused and angry, and she didn't notice as he laid his hand on his Tokijin, ready to draw it when he made his decision. All Hekele could focus her attention on now was the rising blood. It was already to her chest.  
  
Sesshoumaru's POV:  
  
Sesshoumaru's face contorted into one of anguish as he realized how high the blood was. He swore he could feel his heart wretch in his chest as he saw them calling to him, yelling for help. He could not hear them, but he certainly knew what they were saying. He had destroyed the puppet before it could do any more damage but he was still left with the decision. Should he choose wrong...  
He felt helpless, and that was not something he had felt often. Yes, when Rin had been kidnapped by Naraku before, and yes when he had discovered both her and Hekele gone in the future, but not at any other time had he felt this helpless. He didn't like the feeling, not a bit. The blood was to the girls' lips now, and he knew that he had to make his decision fast.  
  
How am I to choose?! He yelled in his mind, wishing for someone to send him an answer. Kami how afraid they both looked! He knew only one truly felt fear but seeing both of them in such a state pained him. He became aware of how much he wanted to hold and comfort Hekele, to let her know that he was there. How absurd the feelings felt didn't matter at the moment, he only wanted to comply with them. And Rin...Rin was also most precious to him, she was like his daughter...if he chose wrong...she would die as well...He could not bear to lose them.  
  
Hekele's POV:  
  
The blood was just below her eyes now...gods how cold it was! If she tilted her head up she could still breathe, and she would hold onto that luck for as long as she could. She could see Sesshoumaru glancing between her and her copy, though with the flow of blood as close to her eyes as it was seeing out of her cell was quite difficult now.  
The fear of dying was at an all time high, but another fear had begun to accompany it as well: Fear of not being cared for. She had never told Sesshoumaru of her growing feelings for him, (or any of her not so annoyed feelings towards him,) nor had he hinted that he cared for her as well, other than that small embrace when she had gone to the future with Rin, Kagome, Kachie, and Sango. Why should he save her? She would be considered a fool to think that he loved her...they only just met, and she had purposely made herself quite an annoyance to him at first...  
Rin. That was why he was trying so hard to save her. If she died, Rin would die as well. Rin was practically his own child, he would die to keep her safe...just as Hekele would. The blood began to pour faster, and Hekele didn't have time to take a deep breath before it was above her head and too late. Her last, frozen, conscious thought was laced with doubt.  
  
He doesn't know me...I'm alone...  
  
Sesshoumaru's POV:  
  
He panicked when he saw the blood flow quicken and rise above their heads. It was now or never. He had to choose.  
Sesshoumaru gave an apologetic look towards one of the cells, (in case he was wrong,) and ran towards the other as fast as he could. He unsheathed his Tokijin in a swift and fluid manner and shattered the cell, discovering that it was made of ice.  
Sesshoumaru could feel the icy cold as the blood rushed out at him, coating him completely. The Hekele in the cell fell out and landed in his arms. He held her tightly. When the flow of blood stopped he kneeled down and flicked the chain around her ankle with his sharp claws and broke it as well.  
After a few heart stopping seconds the Hekele in his arms began to cough up the blood she had nearly drown in. Sesshoumaru held her as to make it easier but just as tightly. He glanced at Rin and could see the shield around her glow black and then recede. He had chosen correctly. Sesshoumaru glanced once more at Hekele and noticed how blue her lips were. He unwrapped his blood-covered tail and curled it about her tightly, to keep her warm. He gently wiped the blood from her face and eyes as she began to come to.  
  
Regular POV:  
  
Hekele opened her eyes and for the second time in her life she woke up to Sesshoumaru holding her up with a gentle look about his face. Seeing the blood covering him completely, Hekele's face turned to one of worry before Sesshoumaru gave her one of his amused smiles. Understanding that he had not been hurt and that none of the blood was his, Hekele returned the smile.  
  
"How many times must I save you from certain death?" he asked, his tone confirming his amusement. Hekele rolled her eyes.  
  
"Hey, I don't remember asking you to fall through Naraku's dimensional rip and to find and rescue Rin and I...you did that on your own."  
  
Sesshoumaru actually chuckled, "True..." His smiled turned gentle once more and he pulled her to his chest and held her there, lightly stroking her arm with his thumb. Hekele smiled again and wrapped her arms around his middle in a tight embrace of her own. It was a meaningful embrace, from both of them.  
Hekele smiled as the happy fact that she had been wrong flowed through her and seemed to warm her from the inside. He cared, and even she could tell that it was for more than an annoying friendship. She could feel his tail wrapped around her and she snuggled into it a bit.  
  
"...How's Rin?" she asked, knowing the little girl had been in as much danger as she. Sesshoumaru, for an answer, gently helped her up off the ground and guided her over to where Rin lay.  
Rin was still asleep, but Sesshoumaru had heard her breathing change; he knew she would wake up soon. Hekele gently stroked the girl's hair, knowing that Sesshoumaru would not have been so calm if Rin was anything but fine. She smiled as Rin slowly woke up and rubbed her eyes. Sesshoumaru's tail was still loosely wrapped around her and Hekele smiled as he flicked Rin's cheek with the tip of it. Rin giggled and opened her eyes the rest of the way. Her face turned to one of panic when she saw all of the blood they were covered in.  
  
"What happened to Hekele-chan and Sesshoumaru-sama?! Are Hekele-chan and Sesshoumaru-sama all right?" she asked worriedly. Hekele smiled and lifted the girl into a huge hug.  
  
"Yes, Hekele-chan and Sesshoumaru-sama are all right...I was a bit worried about you though..." she said in a slightly motherly tone. Rin smiled and hugged her back.  
  
"Rin is ok...Rin just wants to go home..." the girl confided calmly. Hekele smiled again and gave her a kiss on the forehead.  
  
"We'll get home soon Rin...I promise..." she said soothingly. Rin snuggled into her hug and nodded. When she was finally released, she jumped into Sesshoumaru's arms for an embrace from him as well.  
  
"Sesshoumaru-sama saved us...Rin told Hekele-chan that everything would be ok!" she said as she squeezed him tightly. Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at Hekele, who blushed in embarrassment that she had not had more faith. Sesshoumaru smiled slightly and pulled her into the embrace with his tail, which he also wrapped around Rin. Hekele smiled as well and wrapped her arms around the two. She felt happy and safe in the embrace, like nothing bad could happen. It was a good feeling.  
Suddenly a noise was heard and the three turned to find a portal, a light colored one. Their way home. Sesshoumaru looked at the two girls in his arms and sighed. Hell would be waiting on the other side, if not right away then soon. He wished he could protect them both...but he knew that Hekele would want to fight, and he knew that it was not his place to try and stop her, so he wouldn't try. Rin would be safe and sound with Kirara and Jakken; he had all the faith in the world that she would be brought safely to the village of Lady Kaede, where she would be cared for until he and everyone else returned...if they returned.  
Sesshoumaru led Hekele and Rin to the portal and the three stood before it with uncertainty. It could easily be another trap. Hekele stepped forward and turned to the other two.  
  
"Well, here's to hoping we end up in the palace!" she said, before jumping backwards into the portal. Sesshoumaru's face turned into one of panic as he tightened his grip on Rin and sped through the portal as well.  
  
On the other side:  
  
Hekele stood in Naraku's empty throne room with mild satisfaction as she saw Sesshoumaru run through the portal after her carrying Rin in his arms. When he saw her standing there unharmed he graced her with a glare.  
  
"Do not be so reckless. You could have ended up in another world."  
  
Hekele merely smiled at him, "But I didn't and we're still together, so everything's fine!" Sesshoumaru gave her an apathetic look and turned to the door. He was relieved to find that his sense of smell had returned. It must have been blocked out while in Naraku's dimension. After sniffing the air for a moment he found that they were, in fact, alone in that part of the palace except for Kirara and Jakken. They had heard the return of their three companions and had entered the room cautiously.  
  
"M'lord Sesshoumaru-sama! You have returned! What good fortune-"  
  
"Has anyone else returned yet?" Sesshoumaru cut off his servant's praises. Jakken shook his head.  
  
"No, m'lord, you are the first." This made Sesshoumaru worry a bit, but he tried not to let it show.  
  
"Very well, you and Kirara take Rin to safety, at the Lady Kaede's village. You will await our return there, do you understand?!" he ordered. Jakken nodded and, with much resistance and difficulty, hopped onto the giant fire-cat.  
  
"Rin doesn't want to leave Rin's Sesshoumaru-sama or Hekele-chan! Rin just got Sesshoumaru-sama back again!" the girl cried as Sesshoumaru set her on Kirara in front of Jakken.  
  
"Rin...we will return soon, this I promise..." Sesshoumaru said softly to her as he gently hugged her. Rin took a little comfort from this and Hekele gave her a hug as well.  
  
"But don't stay up waiting for us...we might be a little late..." she added, only half joking. Rin smiled though and nodded.  
  
"Rin will be good...and go to bed when Lady Kaede tells Rin to..."  
  
"Good girl...now, we promise to see you later...ok?" Hekele said sweetly, hugging her one last time. Rin nodded and Kirara sped off. Rin looked to the two standing there as she got further and further from them, knowing very well that she might be doing so for the last time. But they had promised...  
  
"Come back safe or Rin won't forgive Sesshoumaru-sama or Hekele- chan!!! Sesshoumaru-sama and Hekele-chan promised!!!" she called after them as she disappeared safely into the distance.  
Sesshoumaru and Hekele looked at each other for a moment and Sesshoumaru drew her nearer to him. He held her in the small embrace for a moment and looked down at his Tenseiga; it was still glowing with Naraku's curse. If anyone died in the fight...he would not be able to bring them back...  
  
"Are you ready to fight?" he asked, glancing down at Hekele. She smirked.  
  
"Are you?"  
  
Meanwhile:  
  
"Houshi-sama!!! Houshi-sama!!! Are you here?!?!" Sango shouted. She was in a forest of some sort; the trees towered high above her head and were very thick, making it difficult to get through with no visible path. Sango knew that Miroku would be faced with a temptation, and she was determined to get to him first. No one was going to take him away from her. Not a fake controlled by Naraku anyway...  
  
Me- So...what do y'all think???  
  
Sango- Well, I was in it a little bit...  
  
Miroku- Hey! I wasn't!!!  
  
Me- Ignores their ranting Hey, no one picked up on my hint in the last chapter!!!  
The one about my plot!!!!!  
  
Sesshoumaru- This annoyed her and I had to listen to her complaining on her  
vacation...so here's a clue...  
  
Me- The clue is what Kikyo said to Naraku. She requested that Kohaku make  
an appearance, (which he will,) to those who passed the tests...  
  
Sesshoumaru- And another hint, (so I don't have to hear her get upset again...I  
hate it when she's upset...) is that the Shikon no Tama is WHOLE  
in the last chapter...but what, I wonder, animates Kohaku so that  
he is living and resides embedded in his back?  
  
Me- nods Yep...now...if ANYONE has ANY idea of what these things mean,  
AND / OR they can figure out a possible plot twist that has to do with it, they  
should send it to me in a review...the person who gets it first, or is the closest  
to my divine plan, will get a reward, (another pic, please Nicole, e-mail me  
your address so I can get you yours...) and special honors like our friend  
Nicole did in this chappie!!! So send me your thoughts!!! R&R!!!!!!!!! 


	13. Monks, Women, and REAL Love

Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Ok, it's been two days and I'm already back to work...it's a record!!! Damn is it hot in here...I am at my mom's house and my lil bro kicked me off the computer...so now I'm using the other one...(which has a shitty keyboard...all of the above took seven min. to type...) in my room, which has a busted window. It is like...90 degrees in here...no joke...with STILL, NON- moving, air...how lovely...  
  
Alrighty then...this is my Sango/Miroku chappie. When I was in the middle of my last chappie I got a couple reviews for the Kachie/Koga chappie, and since I was already working on the other one...I decided keep up with it and give apologies for those who wanted that chappie in this one! Sorry for those who voted for them instead for the last chappie!!!  
  
Ok...no one hit my clue on the money or got as close as I had hoped, but Kachie, (who this has been kept a secret from,) was closest when she came up with these two things:  
1: Kohaku has the entire Jewel in his back, (which he doesn't.)  
2: What if we got the shard that was in his back? (this one was after I told her that  
Naraku wouldn't put the entire jewel anywhere but in his own hand...)  
  
Ok, people, let's review the facts:  
  
1: Kohaku has a jewel shard in his back to keep him animated/alive.  
2: Naraku has a COMPLETE Shikon no Tama.  
3: Bad guys ALWAYS make mistakes.  
4: Kagome can purify jewel shards.  
  
Kachie, this chapter is dedicated to you because you got as close as you did. Good job! Please keep trying! With THESE clues somebody's bound to get closer to the money!  
  
Everyone, I beg of you to try ONE MORE TIME WITH THESE NEW CLUES!!! Take special note of the big words in clues 2 & 3. (But do not ignore the other ones...)  
  
Disclaimer: If I owned Inuyasha...Sesshoumaru would love me and only me and we would have Rin as our biological child...NOT adopted... ;-p  
  
Monks, Women, and REAL Love  
  
Sango's POV:  
  
She pushed her way through the forest as best she could, but after an hour, it was beginning to get tiring. She still could not find Miroku, and Sango didn't like the thought of not knowing where he was one bit.  
  
He's suppose to be rescuing me...not the other way around!!! She thought begrudgingly. Sango could barely make out a clearing up ahead and her heart skipped a beat, perhaps she would have some luck and find him after all...  
But when she got there...the clearing was empty. Sango looked between the trees helplessly as a tear began to role down her cheek. She slumped down at the base of one of the larger trees and pulled her knees to her chest and hung her head.  
  
What's the point...Naraku's probably already given him enough temptation to last him a lifetime...he's probably forgotten all about me by now... she thought hopelessly, closing her eyes in defeat. He doesn't care about me...  
  
Miroku's POV:  
  
"Hello? Is anyone there?" he said as he walked through a seemingly abandoned village. Something didn't seem right to him. Where was everyone? And more importantly, where was Sango?  
  
"Lady Sango?! Are you here?!" he called, hoping for a reply of some sort...of ANY sort... He had recalled Naraku saying, 'They are waiting for you,' as he and his companions were sucked through those odd portals. He had assumed that he would be taken relatively close to Sango...but now he wasn't so positive... He heard a noise coming from one of the huts and clutched his staff cautiously. He couldn't sense any demon aura, but he still had to hold the up most caution.  
He snuck up to the door of the hut and listened carefully. Hearing nothing too suspicious, he slowly pulled back the door and was met with quite the sight. There were three lovely young ladies, about his own age, sitting curled up in blankets near a very small fire. They looked a bit malnourished and tired but otherwise alright.  
  
"My good lady, what has happened here?" he asked the one nearest to him seriously. He had the feeling that he was suppose to be finding Sango, but these three women appeared to need a bit more help. Sango was strong; she could take care of herself for a bit longer...he hoped...  
  
"By the gracious gods! A houshi! We may be yet saved!" the girl nearest him exclaimed to the others once she had realized their guest's presence. She appeared, by her lovely clothing, to be of slight nobility, probably either the daughter or young wife of the leader of the village. She had long jet-black hair that looked like it had been tied in a quite uniquely styled bun before being messily cared for; she held deep brown eyes. Miroku couldn't help the goofy grin that spread across his face when he saw all of the girls look at him as though he were some sort of hero...he loved it when women did that...  
  
"Thank the heavens! Kami-sama has sent us a blessing!" The girl who said this appeared to be a miko in training...a rather shy one at that. Miroku couldn't help be notice the slight blush that tinted her cheeks as she gave him a curt, yet, polite bow that religious figures respectively shared. She could pass as a year or so younger than Miroku and her hair seemed a bit lighter and rather short; Miroku could tell by looking at it how silky it was. She too had brown eyes, except hers were a lighter shade.  
  
"And a rather handsome one at that!" said the third in a naturally deep and slightly seductive voice. She had her long raven hair flowing about her carelessly. She wore a tight, figure-exposing kimono that was perfectly collaborated with the colors of her long faded make-up. Her violet eyes were like deep pools that only the godly should behold. She, Miroku could tell, was a Geisha.  
  
"I am flattered by your praises. Now what, pre-tell, has happened here? And why are you three alone?" he asked, trying not to let his usual habits take over. This seemed a rather desperate situation, and he still had to find Sango...  
  
"Good monk, our village has been terrorized for the past few weeks by a rather unique demon that can turn invisible. It puts a sleeping spell on its future victims and leaves to return for them another night. We two were put under such a spell and our village had been packing to leave. Not knowing that there would be any hope for us, they left us here. The next day this traveling miko in training came upon the village, as you have done this day, and found us here. She used some of her miko powers to destroy the spell and we were awoken..." the noblewoman said sadly.  
  
"Yes, and then the demon kept returning for us! We cannot leave this village for it has put a spell somewhere on the outside sealing us in here so that only holy figures may pass through it. The demon's only flaw..." said the geisha, just as sadly.  
  
"And I do not wish to abandon them and flee, for that is not what I believe I was sent here to do. I have looked once or twice for the source of the spell, but cannot find it nearby outside the village. I do not wish to leave them unattended..." the miko finished.  
  
Miroku nodded, "It has been a few days since she found you I imagine? You need more food and water before you leave this place...to help you regain strength. I will help you as best I can, but my assistance is needed elsewhere as well. My friends are in need of my help and our enemy cannot be delayed. I will, as I said, try to help you though. I saw a forest and I imagine there is a stream or a river there, I will go and get you all some water and, if I can, food to tide you over for a few days until my friends and I can return to give you further assistance..."  
  
The women looked horrified as Miroku turned to leave. The miko in training grabbed the sleeve his robes, "Sir monk! That is where they say the demon resides! In the forest! You must not go there alone!"  
  
Sango's POV:  
  
After sulking for a half-hour or so Sango had berated herself for her lack of self-control and had pressed on through the forest. After another few minutes she could see the edge and was quite relieved.  
  
Thank goodness...A village! Miroku could be there! Perhaps my luck is not so bad... she thought happily as she quickened her pace, with every intention of finding Miroku awaiting her there.  
She ran for all that she was worth towards the village, towards Miroku, towards anything that held hope. The village appeared to be deserted; she was sure it was Naraku's doing.  
She entered the village and began her search for Miroku in the huts. They all looked the same...untouched; a deserted village would NOT look so clean and neat...  
She came to the center of the village, where she was sure Miroku could hear her if she called for him.  
  
"Houshi-sama!!! Houshi-sama!!! Where are you?!" she shouted. Nothing. "Houshi-sama...are you here?!" she tried again. Still nothing. Sango's heart began to ache with worry.  
She resumed her search through the village. After about twenty minutes she found a hut that appeared to have had recent traffic go thru it, a sign not found in any of the other huts.  
  
"Houshi-sama? Are you in there?" she asked, carefully peaking into the hut. What she saw nearly made her cry. There was Miroku, with three women. He was talking to them, and they were begging him not to leave. Sango tried not to seem too annoyed when she entered the hut, for this was something Miroku did often. She would not allow her feelings to be rejected as forwardly as she was sure they would be if Miroku knew how much pain she was going through inside. Didn't he care that Naraku had sent him here? Didn't he remember that she and the other girls had been taken hostage? Didn't he...care at all?  
  
"Houshi-sama, I am sure you are busy and everything, but we must be going, we must face Naraku, now is not the time for your perverted habits...Houshi-sama?" the last part was a question, not a statement, for Miroku made no response indicating that he had heard her. She moved to touch his shoulder and found that her solid looking hand passed right through him. She was invisible...and intangible.  
  
"Good houshi...I am getting a chill, I believe the invisible demon is near here..." the girl dressed as a miko in training said, looking straight at Sango. Sango looked at her hatefully and the other two women looked at her as well, each with a sardonic smile on their faces, hidden from Miroku as he closed his eyes and stood to leave.  
  
"My ladies, I have told you that I will help you as best I can for the time When my prior engagements are taken care of, my friends and I will return to assist you with your problems, but for now I will go to the forest and collect water and if possible food for you to last until we return. I cannot delay, there is someone that I must be looking for and I fear this has already taken up more time than I have to safely spare..." he said as he turned to leave the hut. He looked Sango in the eye for a second, still not seeing her, but it held a meaning to her anyway. Sango's face turned from one of hopelessness to one of joy. He hadn't forgotten her...he had had his mind where it ought to have been the whole time! Three beautiful women and yet he still thought of his 'prior engagements' first...this was something to behold.  
  
The women shot Sango a hateful glare before returning their faces to that one of need. "Good houshi, what about the demon?" the miko in training asked. Miroku turned back to her and tried to give her a heartfelt smile, but something just didn't feel right about it.  
  
"You have already said that you sense him near here, and I am sure that I will be able to defend myself should I run into him. Besides, with him out of the forest, it is the perfect opportunity for me to go and get you supplies..." he said calmly. Sango shot the three a triumphant look, and received a mere glance from the noblewoman as she took a step towards Miroku.  
  
"B-but Houshi-sama...you just got here...you make us feel safe...we do not wish to be alone again...please stay..." she asked, clutching the front of his robes in her fists and burying her face into his chest, feigning tears. Sango fumed but felt a little happier at the look of discomfort coming from Miroku.  
  
"My dear...I must go...the more you delay me the less I will be able to do before I must leave to resume my search..." he said, lightly prying her off. Sango walked up to the noblewoman and looked her in the eye.  
  
"I know you can see and hear me, what the hell are you doing?! He's not falling for it!" she yelled, attempting to punch the demoness in the gut. Her hand went right through her as well. The geisha looked at her with annoyance before turning to Miroku. Sango watched in horror as the geisha walked up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck.  
  
"Please Houshi-sama...stay with us just one night...look, darkness is beginning to fall, it is not safe for even a respectable and brave houshi as yourself to go out at a time such as this..." she said, bringing her face closer to his, slowly. Sango watched with pain as the geisha brought her lips to his and kissed him. He...didn't seem to mind...on the contrary...he...liked it...  
  
"Miroku..." it came out barely above a whisper as tears filled her eyes once more and she began to cry. She was so strong...and yet he had reduced her to tears...just as she always knew he would. She turned around and ran out of the hut, earning triumphant looks from the not-so occupied women.  
  
"Good-bye Miroku!" she yelled, knowing he couldn't hear her but saying it nonetheless. Tears flowed down her cheeks in rivers as she ran...her words laced with pain and sorrow. She ran back to the forest. she could feel the twigs and branches clawing at her as she went. She didn't care. She felt empty suddenly, like no one cared. If Miroku...her one and only didn't...who did?  
  
Miroku's POV:  
  
"Good-bye Miroku!" Miroku opened his eyes and placed his hands on the geisha's shoulders, pushing her away. He had heard Sango. It had been faint, but he was positive that he had heard her.  
  
"Where is she?" he asked the three sternly, staring them each in the eye.  
  
"Who?" the geisha responded. Miroku's glared hardened.  
  
"Where is Sango? I know she's nearby, I heard her!" he raised his voice, his anger rising as well.  
  
The miko smiled at him, "Is she your love? The demon is nearby, it can lure one out by feigning the voice of a loved one and-"  
  
"No, it wasn't the demon..." Miroku said, staring at the miko sternly. How could he have been so blind? "The demon is nearby, yes, but it cannot feign the voice of a loved one! I believe the demon to be a rather gifted seductress, or rather, three demons..." he said, clutching his staff once more, ready for a fight. The geisha's face turned from loving to hateful in seconds.  
  
"How did you figure it out?!" she snarled. Miroku grinned.  
  
"When the, 'noblewoman,' was telling me of the demon, she did not mention its ability to use the voice of a loved one against you...that would be a key point to tell the person who you believed was going to save you...that was too sporadic an answer and not well woven into the web, a poor excuse on the, 'miko's' part. And, of course, I heard the voice of my beloved Sango...I would know it anywhere. Now where is she?!"  
  
The miko grinned evilly, "She was right here most of the time, watching you as you couldn't tear yourself away from us...and as you enjoyed that kiss a moment ago...quite the heart-broken look on her face, just as you were beginning to resist ours pleas too..."  
  
Miroku looked horrified, kami above why had he allowed her to kiss him? He hadn't felt anything and yet...he hadn't been able to pull away until he had heard Sango... "What do you mean she was right here?"  
  
It was the noblewoman's turn to speak, "Houshi...you allowed your eyes to deceive you...she called and called for you, tried to touch you and at one point looked you in the eye, and yet you did not see her...your love is not so strong after all...of course, our only power is seduction and we do it well to unsuspecting idiots...even against their will..."  
  
"She was invisible?" Miroku asked, ignoring the previous comment.  
  
"To you alone. She's quite noisy too, all we could hear was, 'Houshi- sama this, and Houshi-sama that...it was quite deafening really...she tried to punch my friend here as well, thank goodness for our ability to see and hear her and yet not be touched by her...or else my comrade would have a nasty mark on her stomach..." the geisha said, annoyed.  
  
"I wish she had..." Miroku said spitefully.  
  
"We are quite surprised that you heard her, despite how annoying it was...the pain in her voice was rather entertaining...did you hear that too, houshi?" the miko asked.  
  
Miroku grimaced, "Yes...I heard...how can I find her?"  
  
"All we'll tell you is that she went towards the forest...and certain death...another demon awaits her...and he's quite good at getting under his prey's skin and making them wish for terrible things...he rather enjoys death..." the noblewoman taunted. Miroku had heard enough. He threw down his staff and held the rosary around his cursed hand.  
  
"I bet Naraku never told you about my Kazaana..." he said, earning both frightened and curious looks. He grinned and ripped the rosary from his wrist, exposing the deadly air rip inside. Miroku heard the screams of Naraku's useless demons as the three seductresses were sucked inside, and for once, he didn't feel the compassion he should have, his anger was far beyond that. He replaced the rosary and glared at the space where the demons had been before turning and rushing out the doorway behind him and dashing towards the forest.  
  
"SANGO?!? SANGO CAN YOU HEAR ME?!?"  
  
Sango's POV:  
  
"I should have just given up earlier...I should have known he really didn't feel that way for me...he doesn't love me..." she said to herself, once again sitting under a tree. She had cuts and bruises from the trees. She had ran a long way and was tired. She watched as the sun disappeared behind the horizon. Suddenly she felt cold, very cold. She could see her own breath.  
  
"Child...why do you cry? He is not worth it..." a voice said to her. It was a strong, warm, masculine voice. Sango felt rigged and alert at first, but the voice spoke again.  
  
"He does not love you...no one loves you..." it said, this time feeling more frigid than the air.  
  
"But...my friends care...at least a little..." she said, but as she said it she could feel her resolve breaking down. What was happening to her?  
  
"Your soul is trying to tell you what you already know...life is too precious to waste on the unloved..." it continued. Sango could feel herself grow colder...and her mind weaker.  
  
"What...should I do?" she asked. Her eyes had lost their light and Sango felt as though she were drowning in darkness...but it was a comfortingly numb feeling.  
  
"Dear child...leave that to me...I will take away all your pain..." the voice said. Sango closed her eyes as the numb feeling took over. Part of her deep inside told her to resist though; part of her knew she was in danger.  
  
"Will I...be loved?" she asked, that part of her trying to show the rest that something was wrong.  
  
"Love is nothing...your friend Kagome was cast aside when Kikyo returned, Kachie was cast aside when Koga learned of Inuyasha's second love, and Hekele could not possibly be loved my the demon lord...he is constantly annoyed by her, the only reason he puts up with her is so that the young one will not complain...why should you feel anymore love than them??? Their love is fraud...all love is..." Sango felt the last of her warmth leave her and the drowning feeling intensified. Then she heard a voice...a truly warm voice...  
  
"Real love is nothing like that."  
  
Miroku's POV:  
  
He had run as fast as he could. He could see small shreds of Sango's new outfit everywhere. She had left in haste. Why he could see signs of her presence now baffled him for a moment.  
  
Of course...now I'm truly looking for her...when I found the village I had been more preoccupied with its mystery and those...women...more than her, or else I would have put my foot down and continued my search instead of letting them distract me more and more...damn...she was invisible to me in reality because she was nearly invisible to me in my mind...now she might be in danger... Miroku ran all the faster when that thought crossed his mind. He would not allow her to be hurt because of his own stupidity...he did care about her...more than she realized he did...  
He had run for what seemed like ever when he had finally heard her voice. It had seemed lost and distant. It scared him. When he found her his fears were confirmed when he saw her wrapped in a dark, shrouded cloud. Her eyes were glazed over in shadows. He had heard the demon's icy reply when she asked if she would be loved.  
  
"Love is nothing...your friend Kagome was cast aside when Kikyo returned, Kachie was cast aside when Koga learned of Inuyasha's second love, and Hekele could not possibly be loved my the demon lord...he is constantly annoyed by her, the only reason he puts up with her is so that the young one will not complain...why should you feel anymore love than them??? Their love is fraud...all love is..." Miroku had seen her eyes close as she seemed to lose consciousness. He had feared for her no more in their entire time together as friends. He had to give her hope of some sort...  
  
"Real love is nothing like that." There, he had said something, and it was true. He saw as the shroud around Sango lightened a bit and he decided to keep trying.  
  
"Kagome hasn't been cast aside yet and she won't be, Inuyasha loves her and he will realize Kikyo's betrayal before it is too late." The shroud lightened some more.  
  
"Koga is just upset because Kagome is still his friend and she is being hurt, he loves Kachie and will choose her in he end." The shroud was getting weaker with every positive thing he said.  
  
"Sesshoumaru loves Hekele as well. He has brought her back to life, he has not only put up with her but he has played mind games with her and they work together to scare us...they are more than just a jointly held acquaintance...he loves her, any fool can see it. Rin loves her like a mother as well. They are as close as any biological family." The shroud disappeared but Sango's eyes still stayed as clouded as ever. Something else had to be said...  
  
"And I love you...I've always loved you. I'm sorry for not seeing you that was my own stupidity. I'm sorry I always groped you...well, sort of. I'm sorry I always paid attention to other women, I always thought you out of my league but still I had eyes only for you...no one is more special, more perfect, to me than you..." there, he had said it. He had said everything that he had always wanted to say to her. He hoped that her soul believed him though...  
  
"Why do you try to save her so earnestly?" said the voice he had heard speaking to Sango earlier. He looked behind himself and saw the demon. It was a demon with a human's body, male, about six inches taller than Miroku with short brown hair and ice blue eyes..  
  
"Why do you try to steal her away?" he asked coldly, taking a step in front of Sango's unconscious form. The demon chuckled.  
  
"It is what I was created to do, Naraku's orders..."  
  
"Tell me what is happening to her."  
  
"Her soul is being frozen, she will be empty without it and shall die."  
  
Miroku glared at the demon, "Release her ice demon, or you shall be sucked into my Kazaana!"  
  
"You'll have to hit me with it first!" With that, the demon drew his sword and charged in a zigzagged fashion towards Miroku, who barely blocked with his staff. He pushed the demon over himself and watched in horror as its blade nicked Sango's arm, leaving a large cut on it.  
  
"Good aim houshi, you might kill her for me!" the demon called, laughing. It charged at Miroku once again but this time Miroku unleashed his Kazaana when the demon would have made contact with his abdomen. It dropped its sword on the ground at Miroku's feet as it was sucked into the void. He was gone.  
Miroku once again replaced his rosary around his wrist and ran over to Sango, happy to see the shadows about her eyes disappear. He touched her arm gingerly and tore a piece of his robes and wrapped it around the wound as to protect it from infection and further injury. He carefully placed her head in his lap to pillow it and stroked her hair affectionately before grasping her hand. Five minutes later, she began to stir.  
  
Regular POV:  
  
Sango's eyes opened slowly, almost too slowly for Miroku. When she opened them completely, it took her a moment before she realized that she staring straight into Miroku's eyes was laying in his lap. She blushed crimson and shot upward in surprise.  
  
"H-houshi-sama! What're you-" she was cut off as Miroku pulled her to him and held her tightly. He once again began to stroke her hair and was surprised when he wasn't shrugged off. He took it as a good sign.  
  
"Shhh...I'm here...you're not invisible...I can see you now..." he said as soothingly as he could. Sango was surprised at how good it felt to be held in such a fashion. She felt calm in Miroku's presence...safe...and maybe even loved.  
  
"How can you see me?" she asked, taking in the warmth that seemed to be radiating from him. She felt Miroku sigh.  
  
"I can see you because I want to see you...back at the village...my mind was clouded...I can understand if you do not believe me but, those women were demons who...kind of put a spell on me." Sango nodded slowly, half believing the part about the spell.  
  
"That kiss meant nothing to me...I need for you to know that..." he said slowly. Sango snorted and tried to pull away.  
  
"And why do you need for me to know that, Houshi-sama?" she asked, hurt woven in her words.  
Miroku tilted her head to face him, leaned in, and kissed her on the lips, completely taking her by surprise. After a second she kissed him back, somehow feeling secure that it wasn't a trick. When they parted he tilted her head and gave her a kiss on the forehead before grasping her face in both of his hands and making her stare him straight in the eyes.  
  
"Because I need you to believe me when I say that that kiss meant the world to me..."  
Sango's eyes once again had tears in them, but these were tears of joy. She wrapped her arms around Miroku's neck and hugged him tightly, not wanting to let him go. He smiled and returned the embrace.  
  
"Don't ever let anyone convince you that you aren't loved...because you are...very much..." he said to her. Sango nodded into his shoulder and hugged him tighter. He helped her stand up, still holding her, and rocked her back and forth. After a few more moments he pulled out of the embrace unwillingly and looked her in the eye.  
  
"...I think we should start looking for a way back to the palace..." he said, contenting himself with holding her hands for the moment. Sango nodded. Holding one of her hands he led her to where the demon's sword lay. He picked it up and held it out to her.  
  
"You'll need a weapon...I see you have neither your katana nor your boomerang with you..." he said seriously. Sango took the weapon and tied it to her waist.  
  
"Thank you Miroku..." she said truthfully, not knowing what she would have done without a weapon during the final battle, "But it may be harder to get back than you think...we are in a separate dimension created by Naraku and-" Just then, the tree they were near turned into a light colored portal.  
  
"I-I think it's the way back to Naraku's palace..." Sango said, quite surprised. Miroku nodded.  
  
"What were you saying about Naraku creating this dimension? It could be important...and how do you know?" he asked. Sango took a deep breath.  
  
"He used the Shikon shards he possessed and created them for this purpose...to test everyone's love...Naraku wanted to make us miserable before the final battle, and if possible, get rid of some of us before then...Kanna told us all...."  
  
"Kanna? Can she be trusted? And why did he want to test our love?"  
  
"She can be trusted...her and Kagura...and they haven't been wrong yet...they warned us that they would not be able to help us in the final battle, for Naraku holds their hearts and would kill them...and I already said that he did this because he wanted to make us miserable before we died...he didn't think our love was so strong..." she said finally, grasping his hand tighter. Miroku smiled and gave her another small kiss on the lips.  
  
"I guess not..." The two took a step towards the portal but Miroku grasped Sango's hand at the last second and pulled her back.  
  
"Miroku?" The monk looked at her seriously for a moment before speaking.  
  
"Sango, there is something I must ask you before we go through that portal..."  
  
Surprised, Sango nodded, "Ask me whatever you need to ask me Miroku..."  
  
Miroku smiled as he realized that she had used his name rather than his title the last few times she had addressed him...he liked it much better, "Sango...when this is all over with and I am rid of my curse...will you do me the honor of..."  
  
Back in the throne room:  
  
Sesshoumaru and Hekele watched as another light portal opened. It had been two hours since they had gotten back, and they were beginning to get more than a little worried.  
A smiling Miroku and Sango greeted them as the pair stepped out of the portal. Neither Hekele nor Sesshoumaru failed to notice that they were holding hands.  
  
"Oi...what're you two so happy about?" Hekele asked, beaming at them. She and Sango embraced one another as Sesshoumaru and Miroku awkwardly shook hands. Sango grabbed Hekele's wrist and began to drag her to the hallway.  
  
"There is something that I must discuss with you...and the others when they return..." she said, now full of confidence that nothing could go wrong in life.  
  
"Ok..." Hekele said once they were in the hallway outside the room, "What's up other than the newly formed couple?" Sango beamed at her.  
  
"Miroku said these exact words to me before we jumped through the portal and after he said he loved me, 'Sango...when this is all over with and I am rid of my curse...will you do me the honor of...'"  
  
With Miroku and Sesshoumaru:  
  
"What the hell was all that about?" Sesshoumaru asked, surprised that his one and only had been drug away the instant the monk and slayer had returned. Miroku was fidgeting slightly as well...  
  
Miroku turned crimson and stuttered, "U-u-ummmm, w-wellllllll-"  
  
"HE ASKED YOU TO BE HIS WIFE?!?!?!?!?!?!" Hekele's shriek could be heard throughout the entire castle. Sesshoumaru and Miroku paused a moment to imagine Naraku's face when the high-pitched squeal reached his ears. It appeared that his plan wasn't exactly working the way it was suppose to...  
  
Meanwhile:  
  
It was getting dark and Koga's legs were still aching, now worse than ever. He continued to trudge forward until something caught his eye. Something white and green...  
  
"KAGOME!!!!" he cried as he tried to run to the fallen girl. After making sure that she was breathing he took her to a nearby cave to protect her from the elements. He didn't notice two red venomous eyes snap open and stare at him as he turned to start a fire to keep the pair warm...  
  
Me- All done with this one!!!!! All in one day too! I am sorry if this turned out longer than you thought it would, but I really got into it...and believe me, there was more that I wanted to add in but without word count I can't be sure if I over did it or not...sorry...  
  
Sango- No sweat, I like this chappie soooooo much! Yeah!!! I am loved!!!  
  
Miroku- Do you like it when I grope you?  
  
Sango- Huh?  
  
Miroku- Well you seem to like it when I hug you and kiss you and I was  
wondering if you secretly liked it when I groped you...  
  
Sango- Not on your life monk.  
  
Me- OK!!! Enough with the idiocy Miroku! No woman could like that!  
  
Sango- Kikyo might...  
  
Naraku-(poofs out of nowhere) Nope, I tried that once...she purified me so much  
that I was human for a month...  
  
Inuyasha- So that's why we had a really slow month a while back....  
  
Kagome- Why couldn't she have finished him off for us?!? Then we wouldn't be  
in this predicament!!!  
  
Kachie- I don't know, but I am getting REALLY creeped out by that thing with  
Koga in that last paragraph...  
  
Naraku- Excuse me! That thing happens to be my most brilliant creation ever! A  
fake Kagome! Unlike the other mostly useless demons I created, this one  
has zing to it...  
  
Me- What was the deal with the mind reading/talking thing you made look like  
me?  
  
Naraku- Oh, her? She was made only to mimic your moves and mess with your  
mind...I see I under-estimated the demon lord's ability to recognize you...  
  
Sesshoumaru- Damn straight!  
  
Sango- Why aren't these demons powerful? The ones you sent for both Hekele's  
and mine own misery I mean?  
  
Naraku- I did not feel that they needed to be...I see I was mistaken...  
  
Me, Sesshoumaru, Sango, and Miroku- No shit Sherlock!  
  
Naraku-(rolls eyes angrily) However, the demon disguised as Kagome is much  
more powerful....just to add fun to the whole thing...  
  
Kachie- Lovely, I am gonna get killed by a fake Kagome...perfect...  
  
Kagome- Wow, you sure have faith in Koga.  
  
Kachie- Yep...faith that he'll choose you and doom us both...  
  
Koga- Hey!!! Hekele wouldn't write something like that! Would she?  
  
(Everyone looks at me, wishing an answer.)  
  
Me- Maybe, maybe not...hey, Naraku, what are you doing here anyway?  
  
Naraku- Kikyo kicked me out...I've been on the couch for a week and I  
  
complained and she kicked me out...literally...  
  
Inuyasha- So the great Naraku got his ass kicked? Out of his own palace? By a  
dead priestess?  
  
Naraku- Yep...I got lonely...(starts bawling before everyone's eyes.)  
  
Everyone- Oh, my god...that's scary...(backs away slowly...)  
  
Me- Umm...It'll be ok Naraku...we'll put you out of your misery soon....  
  
Naraku- Thanks...(sniffles)  
  
Sesshoumaru- She means we're gonna kill you soon...  
  
Naraku- Aw damn...  
  
Me- R&R if you want to see more idiocy like this!!! 


	14. Sorting Feelingsand Resorting Them

Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love  
  
Ok!!! I was quite happy with the reviews I got...more people were trying to guess my mystery!!!!! The winner of this contest is...um...Kachie. Doesn't it suck to have a best friend who is in the story who knows your every thought once you give them a hint? (Nope, just kidding...it rocks!!!) I shall admit, it took twenty minutes of saying 'no' to her ideas on Yahoo IM, but she got the majority of it on her own. (The part I finally gave to her out of pure need to tell someone my devious plot came thirty minutes later...) The more I thought about it though...the more it didn't seem fair that she won twice in a row, even though she earned it. So I compromised and selected a second winner for those of you who may feel gypped.  
  
Kachie wrote her answer in a review later to make it official, or else I couldn't count it. I, however, told her to put only part of her SELF-DISCOVERED answer in it, and even told her what specifically, so that the story wouldn't be ruined for those of you who, like her, read what other people have to say by looking at their reviews.  
  
My other winner is Kenshin Kawamaki. I am very proud of what you thought, and how close you got without me saying 'nope' for twenty minutes. And, in all actuality, that WAS my original plan BEFORE this one popped into my head. You, my smart friend, get special honors in this chapter and, if you want, I'll send you a work of art of mine via e-mail. Please, would you prefer one of my photography works of art, (some of which is online already, I'll send you one that isn't,) or my personal drawings, which, in turn, are mostly people of some sort and a back round? Nicole, who received special honors a while back, still hasn't gotten her picture because I forgot to give it to Kachie for scanning, (sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry!) And since that is the case, I would like to send her the same offer. Photography, or drawing?  
  
I have posted a quiz about my story on If you want to take the quiz, please go to my profile and select the link provided. Anyone who gets 90% out of ten questions gets honors and a prize. You can take the quiz only once or you will be disqualified, I get e-mail every time someone takes it, so you HAVE been warned...  
  
This is my Koga/Kachie chapter. I hope I get as much positive feedback as I did for Miroku and Sango. That one was high on everyone's favorite list it seems...please enjoy and tell me your thoughts, they are always welcome.  
  
Disclaimer: I, the average fan, own nothing...but...when I rule the world...  
  
Naraku- Oh, would you give it a rest? I tried to take over the world so many  
  
times that my baboon pelt started shedding...  
  
Me- That's because you didn't take good care of it and wore it too much...same  
  
thing happened to your face...here, let me redo your eye-shadow...  
  
Naraku- Thanks...  
  
Me- (finishes and hands Naraku a mirror with a picture of what he used to look  
  
like in it instead of glass) Here, how's it look?  
  
Naraku- It looks great! Thanks! I'm gonna go try and kill your friends again...  
  
Me- (laughs a little and lets him go) (whispers to self) I hope he doesn't mind  
  
pink, purple, green, red, blue, and yellow make-up...he looks like a damn  
  
clown...next I'll do his hair...  
  
Sorting Feelings...and Resorting Them  
  
Kachie's POV:  
  
Kachie slumped down at a stream and cupped some of the crystal blue water in her hands. She briefly looked at her reflection, (which looked more ragged than usual it seemed,) before bringing it to her lips and practically inhaling the cold liquid. She hadn't had anything to drink in hours, since before she had left her era actually, and it was getting hot.  
  
"How odd...it's night time and it's getting hotter...isn't there some sort of scientific rule against that?" she thought aloud bitterly, taking another drink of water, thankful that it was cold.  
  
In this dimension the moon was full, making it easy for Kachie to see everything around her. She rested for about five more minutes before setting out again to look for Koga, wanting to find him before Naraku's thug did. She looked around as she did so, looking for anything that looked like it could make a decent weapon. Kachie stopped for a moment and thought about her friends.  
  
Kagome doesn't have her bow and arrows...and Hekele doesn't have her katana or sais...they had been gone when she woke up in the cell...as well as Sango's katana...I hope they're doing alright... she thought sadly, wanting to know what had happened to them. Sighing, she pressed on through the meadow she had found the stream in towards the other side, which happened to be the darkest forest she had ever seen.  
  
"As Hekele would say: Lovely..." she quoted sarcastically as she glanced once again at the stream, which happened to flow into the forest, "What are my odds that both Koga and Naraku's demon are in there?" She watched as a mouse ran into the forest and then squeal for its life once it was probably two feet in. She then heard crunching noises, ones made by something eating.  
  
"Knowing my horrid luck...the odds are probably pretty good..." she said, rather annoyed. Sighing both in defeat and apprehension, she followed the stream into the black woods, hoping not to meet the same fate as the mouse.  
  
Koga's POV:  
  
He stayed near Kagome to make sure she wouldn't get cold...not that it wouldn't be too difficult, what with the sudden rise of temperature, but he wanted to be near her anyway. Koga looked out the entrance to the cave at the barely visible sky. The stars that had been littering it an hour ago were beginning to hide behind dark clouds that could only foretell of storms ahead.  
  
"I am glad that I found you before those clouds rolled in..." he said to Kagome, though she was still unconscious. He eyed her critically, as if checking once again for unnoticed wounds. He idly wondered why it was that Naraku had blocked his sense of smell when he had sent him wherever it was that Koga happened to be in.  
  
He glanced towards the back at the cave they were in. It was very large, and probably went all the way to the other side of the rock wall it was carved in. Other demons could enter, perhaps some already had. No matter, if any came near him or Kagome, he would kill them. Then, as he looked out the entrance to watch the dark clouds block the oddly full moon, another thought crossed his mind.  
  
I wonder if Kachie is alright...  
  
Kachie's POV:  
  
Drip. Drip. Drop. Kachie closed her eyes in frustration as it began to sprinkle through the insanely dense trees. She absolutely HATED rain. She was aware that the wind seemed to have changed directions suddenly. It wasn't gonna rain...it was gonna monsoon.  
  
"Perfect. I despise water that falls from the sky...and now I'm gonna drown in it if I don't find some shelter...but I really need to find Koga..." she said as she ducked under a branch, "I should probably try to get away from all of these trees...I attract enough bad luck...I do NOT want to add lightning to my 'things I surprisingly lived through' list..."  
  
She jogged around trees and under branches for another five minutes in hopes of finding shelter before the rain really started to pick up. She groaned in defeat when she felt the rain suddenly coming down on her in what seemed to be gallons per second and slowed to a walking pace. After getting soaked to the bone for about more three minutes she found a clearing...and what appeared to be the bottom of a rock wall. The truth was, the rain was so hard in the clearing that she couldn't see past her hand clearly. She hesitated before running towards it, hoping to see an especially dark spot, which would signify a cave. For once, her rotten luck dished out something good.  
  
She saw a small opening near the ground, just barely big enough for her to climb into without getting stuck. Not even thinking twice about demons or stray animals that may have already taken refuge there, she made a mad dash for it and, getting on her stomach and sliding into it through the now muddy ground, climbed in. As far as she was concerned, if any demons had made that place their temporary home, she'd scare them to death with her runny make-up and red and black knotted hair. There was no way in Hell she was going back out into that rain.  
  
She sat down on a thankfully dry rock and looked at her surroundings. The cave appeared small, but if she climbed up the wall a few feet she could see an opening that led to another chamber. Curiosity claimed her and Kachie climbed up the rocky wall into the next room. The cave, which she saw was much larger now, seemed to go on forever. Before Kachie could make her next move, she sneezed.  
  
Koga's POV:  
  
The sound of an echoing sneeze reached Koga's ears like a gong at a festival. He stood up and was about to investigate the source of the sound when Kagome began to stir at his feet. He instantly sat back down, (ignoring the sound for the moment,) and began to gently shake the girl awake, knowing he could help her better if she was able to tell him what hurt and such. He was vaguely aware of the temperature dropping considerably.  
  
He watched with earnest as Kagome began to open her eyes. She was sure to be surprised that he had found her and not that mutt Inuyasha, but it would be a good surprise. She moaned as if in pain, (which made Koga wince with displeasure,) before opening them completely and revealing him to her. Suddenly a strange feeling over took him, and it wasn't a good one. He felt like he had suddenly lost something...something VERY important. He, choosing to ignore the feeling for the moment, met her eyes with his trademark smile.  
  
"K-koga? Where am I? And, where's everyone else?" she asked, before sneezing a bit. Koga couldn't help but do a mental victory dance. She hadn't specifically asked for Inuyasha; he was happy.  
  
"We are in some place that Naraku has devised...I found you unconscious an hour or so ago...I brought you here and then it began to rain..." he said gently. Kagome only nodded as she sat up. Without warning, she wrapped her arms around Koga and started crying into his shoulder.  
  
A bit startled, Koga could only gently wrap his arms around Kagome as she sobbed, "Kagome...what's happened? Naraku didn't hurt you did he?" Venom dripped from his words as he finished that last sentence. Kagome shook her head but didn't move. Koga sighed and held her tighter.  
  
"...While we were all in the dungeon...Sango told me something about Inuyasha..." she said slowly. Koga instantly tensed. What had Inuyasha done to make her so sad?  
  
"She told me that he had seen Kikyo the other night before he had seen me...and that he was rejected for being human...he felt lonely and came to my era...we talked a bit and he told me he loved me...but the only reason he did it was because he wanted to be with someone...anyone...because SHE hurt him...he doesn't love me...not like you do..." she said sadly, not loosening her grip on him. Koga, who had apparently been trying to talk to Kachie when this discovery had been made, growled in anger at Inuyasha's idiocy.  
  
"That's right Kagome...I DO love you..." he said, tightening his hold on her with one arm and wiping away her tears with the other. But even as he said it, something tugged at his heart...trying to remind him of something...something important...  
  
Kachie's POV:  
  
Since nothing had jumped out to eat her after she sneezed, Kachie assumed that she was safe. She decided to see just how far the cave went. As silently as she could, just in case she truly wasn't alone, she walked through the room, seeing another opening near the ground; this one was like a tunnel, burrowing down about ten feet before leading to another room.  
  
"Why am I being drawn deeper into this place? I feel like I NEED to keep going...but even I know how stupid and irresponsible it is...I could get lost..."she thought as she stared at the opening. But still...she felt like she NEEDED to go down there...  
  
Being the girl she was, Kachie couldn't ignore the feeling, so, getting her footing as best she could, she began to crawl backwards down the tunnel. With about five more feet to go until she reached the end, she found that she couldn't find any more foot holes. Panicking slightly, she looked around and saw one a bit further down. She stretched her legs as far as they would go, trying to reach it. Once she touched it and found it could hold her weight, she let go of one of the rocks and grabbed a lower one. It didn't hold her weight. She wasn't able to grab another rock before she slipped and fell. It was a lot further down than she had thought. She screamed in fear.  
  
Koga's POV:  
  
He lifted his head and stared at the back of the cave. He had heard a scream, a feminine scream...he knew that scream...  
  
"Koga...what's the matter?" Kagome asked, clutching him tighter. She had a habit of doing that when she was sad...but it was the first time she had ever done that to him...  
  
"...You didn't hear that scream just now?" he asked her. Kagome shook her head.  
  
"No...are you feeling alright Koga?" she asked, looking up at him. Koga nodded and stood up.  
  
"I have to go and find out what that scream was...I KNOW I heard it..." he said slowly, trying to figure out why that scream had sounded so familiar...  
  
Koga looked down in surprise when Kagome reached up and grabbed his hand, making him blush slightly. The pleading look in her eyes softened his and he kneeled down next to her.  
  
"...Don't leave me alone...ok? I just...I just need you with me right now...I feel like I can depend on you...I always have...and I'm sorry I didn't realize that until just now..." she said, looking into his eyes for hope and forgiveness. Koga smiled at her, leaned in, and gave her a light, and surprisingly gentle, kiss on the cheek. He knew that she would still be aching for Inuyasha a while...he had hurt her...but Koga would let her know that she still had HIS heart...though he knew that he would need to be patient with hers.  
  
He leaned back and stood up again, "You can depend on me...and there is nothing to apologize for...but I still need to know who screamed...I heard it and something tells me that I should go and help. Alright? I promise I'll be back here in a half hour tops..." He gave her a pleading smile and Kagome nodded slowly and released his hand.  
  
"...Ok..." she said meekly, looking down at the ground. Koga's face fell and he wanted to tell her never mind and stay like she wanted, but he felt a need to go looking for the woman who had screamed. He pushed Kagome's bangs out of the way of her face and gave her is trademark smile before heading off at a slight jog towards the sound.  
  
By now the pain that had been flowing through his legs had numbed considerably and it was much easier to move around without having too much of it. Koga found that the cave was quite oddly shaped. There were places where he had to climb up, down, around, and under rocks and rock ledges just to get to other caverns in the cave.  
  
Caves aren't formed like this...this is way to irregular and the caverns are formed in such sporadically different locations from each other...this isn't natural... he thought uneasily. Koga saw a large opening, (which oddly enough reminded him of Inuyasha's big mouth,) which seemed to lead down for a long ways. Feeling an odd sort of tug towards the cavern far below, he grimaced and jumped down. Before he landed Koga got a strange rush...was it anticipation? For what though?  
  
He landed with a thud and his legs buckled beneath him, "Damn...they aren't as strong as I thought they were..." he scowled. He stood carefully and looked around. Now he knew something was wrong, the place was shaped like a maze.  
  
"Kagome's" POV:  
  
That stupid wolf should have stayed put...now he'll only have to suffer more...pity...he would have been fun to toy with longer... she thought evilly. She blinked and her chocolate eyes turned into a blood red. If you looked closely, you could see lightning crackling in them dangerously. As if on cue, the storm outside picked up considerably, creating sheets of water to fall in circles, pounding on the ground horribly hard. Her raven hair turned into a hot pink color and shortened to her shoulders, her clothes, (blue jeans and a pink t-shirt,) turned into a long flowing black kimono with a hot pink trim, and a slit that went up to her waist. Attached to her waist was a battle-axe. It wasn't the easiest weapon to use...but she liked it for all the gore. To finish off the transformation, her long, flawless nails turned a hot pink as well.  
  
After he sees that wench from the future he will begin to retrieve his memories of her...as well as his feelings...I'll have to kill them both now...this should be fun... she thought as she stood up and stretched. She walked towards the direction that Koga had taken with her hands latched behind her head in a bored manner.  
  
"Man...he was kind of cute too, oh well...hope he likes whirling winds and lots of rain..." she said with a sly smile. Good boy...now just stay in one place for your master...  
  
Koga's POV:  
  
Feeling more sure that he was suppose to be finding whomever had screamed, Koga pressed on through the maze and around many turns and bends. He continued this way for near thirty minutes before finding what he was sure he was looking for.  
  
There, lying under what appeared to be an opening in the wall leading straight up was an oddly garbed girl. In fact, everything about her seemed odd. Her hair was red and black, her face was smudged with dark make-up, and she wore a small, black, and strange tunic with a red cross in the middle. Unlike most women in this era she wore pants, which appeared to be made of oddly designed fabric in an equally odd cut and fit. They were black and littered with steel chains. She was covered from head to toe in mud, probably because of the storm. Despite all of this, Koga felt as though he knew her...and cared for her deeply.  
  
"Why...do I feel this attraction to her? It's almost if she were...my woman. But Kagome...what is this strange feeling?" he asked himself as he bent down and got a better look at her. He surprised himself by reaching out and brushing her hair out of her face. Despite the running make-up he thought her quite beautiful. He felt quite familiar with her.  
  
"Do I know you?" he asked her unconscious form gently, once again surprising himself. He couldn't shake the feeling that he knew her...on the contrary it kept getting stronger.  
  
The girl stirred a bit and she began to slowly open her eyes. Koga watched in earnest as her deep earth colored eyes met his. Her orbs seemed to enlarge when she saw him.  
  
"K-koga? What're you doing down here?" she said shakily, before sneezing. Koga felt a smile tug at his lips at the innocence coming from the devilish looking creature. Yes...he obviously knew her. He could feel his affections for this girl growing every second. Suddenly, a name rushed into his head, hitting him harder than Kagura with her Dancing Dragons attack.  
  
"Kachie..." he said it slowly, as if testing the name out on his own tongue. Kachie smiled at him and tried to sit up but Koga lightly pressed her shoulder back down, luckily for her it wasn't her injured one.  
  
"You need to stay still for a bit...you could have a concussion or something," he said softly, feeling more and more secure with her presence. He also knew that he had the right name, not only did it feel right, but she also wasn't yelling and screeching like a woman would if you had called her by the wrong name...  
  
"But I don't wanna..." she whined. Koga actually grinned at this and gave a strand of her hair a slight tug.  
  
"Quit your whining pup wanna-be..." he teased, more of his memory returning to him. This was Kachie. Best friend of Hekele and Kagome, becoming quickly a best friend of Sango, a huge whiner, loves wolves, dark colors, odd make-up, lots of thin dark bracelets, spikes on collars, and was the one he had spent so much time talking to despite certain confused emotions...that's who this girl was.  
  
"Again, Koga, I don't wanna..." she teased back. Her eyes suddenly held a sparkle in them that told of her rebelliousness. Koga rolled his eyes as he sat next to her.  
  
"So what happened after...you were taken?" he asked, suddenly getting serious. Kachie gave him a smile that made his heart ache. He had felt so horrible about not being able to save her, and yet she wasn't mad?  
  
"Well, after we woke up from our 'nap' and our wounds were all bandaged, Kanna came to visit us..."  
  
"KANNA! The soul stealer? She didn't-"  
  
"Koga, does it look like I'm a soulless zombie to you? I know my make-up is a mess but still...No, Kanna didn't harm anyone...she came to warn us about Naraku's plan...about what would happen when you all came to save us...Kagura had sent her...they wanted to help..."  
  
Koga sneered at this, he'd never forgive Kagura for murdering his clan, "And what did she say would happen?"  
  
"She said that Naraku had created four dimensions in which we would each await our 'respective male'. Also awaiting them would be either a temptation or confusion. Naraku wants to...test our love...before he kills us..." she turned her head away from his as she said this, as if in shame.  
  
Koga reached out and pulled her face to look at his, "How was everyone when you last saw them?" he asked, diverting the conversation back to something that had caught his mind.  
  
Kachie sighed and propped herself on her elbows, "Hekele had a head injury, Rin was just knocked out for a bit, Sango was just a bit banged up after being thrown through a wall, and Kagome had a huge cut on her stomach. Don't worry; I bandaged it up for her after she woke up. It wasn't nearly as bad as it looked, but you could see it through her shirt a bit..." she explained once she saw Koga's suddenly serious expression when Kagome was mentioned. Kachie felt her heart sink a bit with jealousy for the girl.  
  
"...You say Kagome had a stomach injury?" he asked. Kachie nodded.  
  
"Yeah...she did..."  
  
"...I was just with Kagome...I had found her unconscious...we spoke when she woke up and I never saw an injury on her...anywhere..." he said seriously. Kachie's eyes got wide.  
  
"I think we found your temptation..."  
  
"I think you're right..." Came a feminine voice high above them...this one Koga was positive he didn't know.  
  
Regular POV:  
  
Koga and Kachie looked up and saw the demoness. She had an axe in her hand and was twirling it about playfully, circles of wind being created as she did so. She was also smiling. Koga growled as the realization of who he had been in the company with set in.  
  
"You bitch...pretending to be Kagome...how DARE you!" he yelled with hate.  
  
The demoness stopped her twirling and frowned, "Hey, it's not my fault that you're still obsessed with that chick, I was just following orders. Besides, I couldn't help but enjoy a sweetheart like you while I could ne? Oh, and darling, you really should get those legs checked out, they're starting to look pretty bad..."  
  
Kachie looked at Koga's legs and gasped, "Koga...your shards..."  
  
"Yeah...Naraku has the whole jewel now..."  
  
Kachie drew her eyes from his injured legs long enough to panic, "WHAT!?!?!"  
  
"Yes little chickadee, he has the WHOLE jewel, lovely ne? Now...I'm suppose to be killing you now, mind if I get started?" the demoness said in a bored manner. She flew down at the two and drew her axe once more; this time it glowed with a blue light that crackled with lightning in accordance with her eyes. She was fast.  
  
Koga scooped up Kachie in his arms and dodged the deadly blow, barely. He darted behind a rock and set Kachie down gently. He was about to run off to do battle with the demoness when Kachie grabbed his arm, holding him back.  
  
"Koga, are you well enough? Your legs are beginning to bleed and they look like they could be infected..." she said to him, concerned. Koga's heart tugged with guilt that he could actually have forgotten her...  
  
"...I am well enough to protect you."  
  
"Well I don't want you to! You need to watch your own back and I'll watch mine!"  
  
"What can you do?!" he asked angrily.  
  
"Get me a weapon and you'll see!"  
  
"I don't have time for this!" Koga rushed out of their hiding spot and ducked as the demoness took a swing at him with her axe.  
  
"Oh cut the drama already!" she yelled as she took another swing at Koga. She then stood still and glared at him. Her eyes shining with an icy annoyance seemed to trigger another odd change in the weather. The temperature began to drop and small white flakes began to fall from dark clouds that seemed to form around her. It was snowing.  
  
"Really now, can you seriously concentrate on a battle with all the guilt you must be feeling? After all, you forgot all about the runt over there...just as you were pronouncing your love for that Kagome chick too..." she taunted. Koga growled and took the open shot she gave him by clawing into her stomach.  
  
"Die bitch!" he yelled out of anger.  
  
"I don't think so!" she yelled, taking another shot at him with her axe. Koga jumped up and was narrowly missed. The wind in the cavern suddenly picked up, as did the temperature just a bit. Enough to cause hail. With the now frozen water beating down on her victim the demoness smiled something evil.  
  
"Having fun yet?"  
  
Kachie watched the battle and scowled, "Idiot..." she said as she looked around for something to fight with. All she could find were rocks.  
  
"How the hell am I suppose to help if I don't have a damn weapon!!!" she growled in frustration. "Hell, I'd be happy for a Bee-bee gun, or a potato cannon even...then I'd just need potatoes...or rocks..." Then it hit her, as she looked back down at the rocks, which were quickly being covered in the snow and hail, in deep thought.  
  
"It's worth a shot..." She grabbed a pretty good-sized one and took aim.  
  
The demoness finally succeeded in hitting Koga with her axe. The pain was almost unbearable as lightning struck the wound alone. The new gash on his left leg was relatively small, for she had only grazed him even in his weakened state, but with the lighting it served its purpose. He sunk to the ground angrily as his leg would no longer support him.  
  
The demoness grinned, "Where's your girl? Does no one love you wolf prince?" The wind and hail became even more commanding as the walls of the maze were being blasted to shreds and Koga's body was getting the beating of his life. Suddenly, from behind the demoness came flying a large rock that hit her square in the back of her head at an extremely high speed. It killed her instantly.  
  
"I'm right here." The wind died down inside the cave and the storm ceased almost instantly. Koga looked at the girl who was walking up to him with both anger and bewilderment.  
  
"What the hell did you think you were doing butting into my battle?! You're as bad as that half-baked mutt!" he yelled, allowing the anger to get the better of him. Kachie froze dead in her tracks. She had thought Koga would have been grateful, perhaps even a bit impressed that her lucky shot had actually hit. Why was he mad at her?  
  
"Y-you needed help...and I tried to give it to you...and got lucky..."  
  
"I said that I could do it!!! And if you hadn't butt in I would have!" he retorted angrily, not looking her in the eye.  
  
"What's your problem?! I wanted to help because I gave a damn about you and you get mad at me?! I'm sorry I'm not Kagome but at least stop yelling at me! Pride isn't everything!!!" she yelled back, just as loud. Koga was about to round on her when he met her eyes and saw the hurt expression on her face. Suddenly he felt that tug of guilt again. God, was this how Inuyasha felt? Koga hated the idea of lowering himself to that level of emotion...but here he was.  
  
"...I was supposed to rescue you wasn't I? That's what the leader of a pack does...he looks out for the members of his pack...and the male always looks out for his woman...but you saved me...I'm never gonna live this one down if the damn mutt finds out..." he said almost jokingly...almost. Kachie caught on and smiled a bit.  
  
"Well...then we'll just have to keep it a secret now won't we?" she said, sitting down next to Koga, who snickered.  
  
"Are you sure? You women have pretty big mouths..."  
  
"Yes but no MAN is perfect either..."  
  
"Is that why you aren't mad that I forgot you existed?" Koga asked suddenly. Kachie had to think a moment on that one.  
  
"Well, I'm mad, but like I said, no man is perfect, and besides...you remembered me in the end...so I can forgive and forget this one quick," she said looking at him gently. Koga took this as a god sign and put his arm around her, pulling her to him. Kachie smiled and allowed him to. They sat there for a few minutes in contentment before Koga spoke.  
  
"...And for the record...I'm glad you're not Kagome..."  
  
"Why's that?"  
  
"Cuz unlike with her I can have you all to myself..."  
  
"Moron..."  
  
"Runt..." he gave her a little squeeze when he said it. Kachie rolled her eyes.  
  
"Must you call me that? That psycho demoness called me that."  
  
"Yeah...but you ARE a little short...almost the same height as Rin..."  
  
"Excuse you! I am a good foot an a half taller than her!"  
  
"But everyone else is over two feet taller than her..."  
  
"You're evil."  
  
"Thank you." Kachie growled at this and took another look at Koga's leg, which was still bleeding a bit. She ripped about an inch wide band from around her shirt and bandaged the wound as best she could. Koga's eyes never left her as she worked. When she was done Kachie realized that he had been staring at her and blushed.  
  
"I didn't want it to bleed anymore...you should probably stay off it for a while...not that our luck would permit that but still..." she said. Koga rolled his eyes and nodded.  
  
"So tell me runt...how did you hit her with that rock while she was blowing all that hot air in here?" he joked. It was Kachie's turn to roll her eyes.  
  
"More like cold air...and I used that wind. I threw the rock straight ahead even though I was a good twenty feet to the side of her, the wind was so bad that it picked the rock right up and carried it to her, which made it pick up speed. As for the deadly hit...pure and complete dumb luck..." she said truthfully, causing Koga to laugh.  
  
"I got saved by a runt who only half knew what she was doing...great..." Kachie grinned.  
  
"Yep..." as she said it, a light colored portal appeared near the two. Kachie and Koga exchanged glances before standing, (Koga using Kachie's help a bit,) and walking towards it. They passed the fallen demoness and Kachie paused to look at her weapon.  
  
"Do, ya think you can use it?" Koga asked, knowing what she was thinking.  
  
"Well, I don't know if I can shoot lightning, control the weather, and make people forget each other...but I can twirl it and slice stuff," she said happily. Koga grinned.  
  
"Close enough I guess." Kachie smiled at him as he leaned on a wall so that she could retrieve the weapon. Once it was in her possession, she wrapped Koga's arm around her shoulders once more and walked to the portal. Koga entwined his fingers in hers before as the pair stopped to look at the portal.  
  
"...You mentioned that Naraku wanted to test our love...how do you think we did?" he asked, only half joking. Kachie smiled as she turned her head to face him.  
  
"I think we passed with flying colors."  
  
Koga smiled back, "Good, then I won't feel too bad about this." He leaned in and gave her a small kiss on the lips...which earned him a face-full of smudged make-up.  
  
Kachie looked at him and giggled, Well, this is going the be fun to explain now isn't it...  
  
"What?" Koga asked, knowing that something about him was making her giggle. As they walked through the portal Kachie smiled.  
  
"You'll see..."  
  
Naraku's throne room:  
  
Sango was resting sitting up with Miroku's head resting on hers with his hand set around her waist but was slowly, dangerously getting close to her butt. Hekele was asleep with Sesshoumaru's arms around her protectively and her head was resting on his shoulder. Sesshoumaru himself had suggested that everyone get as much rest as possible while they could, with one person keeping guard at a times in shifts, and it was his turn.  
  
He watched as another portal appeared and became a bit relieved. Even he was beginning to doubt that anyone else would be returning at that point, so he was grateful when he saw Koga and Kachie appear through the portal.  
  
The two were banged up, that was for sure. Koga was using Kachie for support and his leg was bandaged up a bit. Sesshoumaru could smell the injury...it smelled like it had been burned.  
  
"What happened to you? Naraku visit you personally?" he asked tauntingly. Koga, who was happy to find that he had his sense of smell back, sniffed the air when he saw Sesshoumaru and Hekele covered in blood. Growling when he found that it belonged to neither of them and that no one other than him was injured, he replied.  
  
"No..."  
  
"But a bitch who could control the weather and make people forget each other did...glad she's dead..." Kachie said bluntly, careful to keep her promise to Koga and not tell anyone she had killed the demoness. Koga, (who was mildly surprised at this,) nodded.  
  
Sesshoumaru was surprised by Kachie's attitude but hid it with a smirk when he saw her runny make-up on Koga's face, "Someone's been busy..."  
  
Koga growled, "What did you say?"  
  
Sesshoumaru smirked again, "I said that everyone is resting up for the battle as much as possible, taking turns as guard." Koga growled, knowing that he was lying, and slumped down to the ground, wrapping his arms around Kachie as she tried to get to sleep.  
  
"Oh, and Koga?" Sesshoumaru said as he leaned his head on Hekele's and closed his eyes, "It's your turn."  
  
"Damn dog..."  
  
With Naraku:  
  
"It seems that everyone has made it back Naraku...shall we send Kohaku now?" Kikyo asked from her position next to the evil hanyou as they gazed into an unhappy Kanna's mirror.  
  
"No, darling, I think it would be more fun if we let them sleep and gain strength...for now we must attend to Inuyasha..." he said, pulling her towards a dark corner where an awake Kagome was gagged with her wrists and ankles bound. Fear was swimming in her eyes and Naraku loved it.  
  
He yanked her up by the throat and held her above the ground as a portal of black evil appeared behind the three, "I want you to know that you will not be so fortunate as your friends down there...my apologies for your rotten luck." He said it with a smirk and the usually brave Kagome whimpered in pain as he gave her throat a slight squeeze. Kikyo gave her an evil glare before entering the portal. Naraku smiled and walked in with her...Kagome still held by her throat.  
  
Me- Ha! I am proud of this one! I made it longer than the other two because I  
  
had so many reviews for it...an added peace offering to those people.  
  
Kagome- You are so mean to me!!! Why?!?!?!?!?!?  
  
Me- (gives an I'm-so-sorry look) Hey, at least I'm meaner to him...(points at  
  
Naraku.)  
  
Naraku- (with clown make-up still on and Hekele's 'I fixed your hair' style) I will  
  
rule the world!!! I am back in my palace and Kikyo has forgiven me for  
  
being a sniveling ass!  
  
Me- Are you off the couch yet?  
  
Naraku- Nope, but if I stop complaining I should be off in about a week.  
  
Me- Oh, ok...why don't you head home and cook her a surprise dinner? Women  
  
love that! Be sure to char the hot-dogs and use expired veggies.  
  
Naraku- Thanks for the tip! (Runs home to use Hekele's advice)  
  
Kagome- Wow...you ARE meaner to him...nice one...  
  
Me- Thank you.  
  
Sesshoumaru- (very irritated,) Tell me how it is that that IDIOT is the cause of all  
  
this trouble?  
  
Everyone- (shrugs and listens in the distance as Kikyo begins throwing things at  
  
Naraku because she has a deathly fear of clowns and is also choking  
  
on the expired food.)  
  
Sesshoumaru- (looks at Hekele) That WAS a good one...  
  
Me- Again, thank you. R&R quick...the big chappie that everyone has been  
  
waiting for is coming...get ready to catch it! (looks at the BIG chappie  
  
coming in the distance and looks at her LITTLE trap (which happens to be a  
  
nearly full floppy disk)) I think I need a bigger disk... 


	15. Her SongHis Memoriesand His Greatest Dec...

**Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love**

Ok...it hurts...it hurts so much...no one tried out my quiz...oh the agony...plus I got a monster sunburn on my back...I maintain that the sunscreen my brother applied on it for me was faulty...Then, the next day, my dad's girlfriend had me bike down to the store and buy some pop while on my six mile peddle...ok...so carrying a 2 liter isn't as easy as she thinks it is. I got to do that for 3 miles. So I then get home and can't get off my bike unless I drop the pop...which we needed like THEN! So I swing my leg over like I usually do, lose my balance, drop my bike, **_fall on it_**, and seriously aggravate my sunburn...which hit my seat and back tire...

This chapter is dedicated to no one...since no one cares enough to go to my profile and try.

I have had a really bad week; my mom broke the news to me that she had to put my pet kitty down. She had come home after 'escaping' for a night, limping. As time went on over the next week or so, it got worse and worse, but they couldn't afford to take her to a vet because her boyfriend's paycheck hadn't been sent to him. Then I went on vacation.

The week I got back I spent the weekend with my mom. My kitty, whom I had been told was getting better, had begun to knaw on her injured leg, which was horribly swollen from her knee down to her paw. I begged my mom to take her to a vet, just to see WHAT was wrong with the leg in question. She said that they couldn't afford to do even that. Her boyfriend, after three weeks, still hadn't received his paycheck, ANY of them. (He is on disability leave...and HAS to stay home or else they'll get lawyers and say that he isn't disabled, even though it is a mental disability.) So, this past Sunday, Mom picks my brother and I up and takes us to the zoo and to the beach. Jim, (her boyfriend,) had finally gotten his money.

So, mom and I are tanning ourselves and my lil bro is in the water, she sits up and says that she has to tell me something. I find out that the first thing they did was take my kitty to the vet. They found out that either they pay $1700.00 for an amputation, or they pay $35.00 to have her put to sleep. Even if they weren't behind on their bills and had money left in their accounts, (which they used to pay the bills in their three weeks without money,) they still couldn't afford to save my kitty, which was murder on them too. My kitty was Jim's baby...his favorite...as was she mine. They put her to sleep. She isn't suffering anymore...she had stopped eating a few days ago...but now she's ok. So, my week has just gone downhill after that. I miss my kitty Anzu! I am sorry if it took too long for this update, but I have had a **BAD** week so far...so NO complaining!!!

Ok...that's enough of this authoresses woes...not that ya'll care about much more than this crappy story anyway...here's the chappie that you've all been waiting for...INUYASHA and KAGOME!!! There will be a song tied into it later in the chapter...there will be flashbacks...and lots of mental anguish on Kagome's part...before Inuyasha makes his choice anyway...but then again...will that help her sad heart?

Disclaimer: I own zilch. That includes songs...

P.S. This chapter is centered around Inuyasha and Kagome, however, do to an inner need to involve Kanna and Kagura a bit as well and let you know what they have been up to and what they are planning, there will be tidbits featuring them instead, in fact, the chapter starts with them. They are going to interact with the rest of the gang and will show them what is happening to Inuyasha and Kagome through Kanna's mirror, as Naraku had been doing.

Inuyasha is the one male that has everyone worried the most. It is only right that the gang get a peek on what is happening to the two. THEY'VE BEEN MISSING ALL NIGHT!!! So...if you want to know _why_ this special chappie is different, it's so that we get more information on what's happening around us...deal with it!

**Her Song...His Memories...and His Greatest Decision**

With Kanna and Kagura:

"Kagura...Naraku has left with Kikyo and Kagome to Inuyasha's dimension...we should help their friends now..." Kanna said passively, not being able to articulate any other emotion. Kagura, who had been sitting in her chambers awaiting this news, stood and headed towards the door where the child-like demoness stood with her mirror. She stroked Kanna's hair for a moment before leading the way to Naraku's throne room, where they would assist Inuyasha and Kagome's comrades in any way possible.

"If we help them with their injuries then they will be all the better to help us with ours...I pray to kami they are not so badly injured that this potion should not help..." she said, holding up a healing potion in a glass container. She couldn't have bought a more helpful potion or Naraku would have sensed its power and would have demanded an explanation, so she had settled for this one when she had been fortunate enough to slip away from the palace.

She had only been out for less than an hour, but it had been less than an hour of freedom as well, so it was worth the risk. Thank goodness Naraku had been busy watching the events through Kanna's mirror or else he may have noticed...

Inuyasha's POV:

Inuyasha walked slowly near the edge of the cliff he was standing on. He had been looking for Kagome and Kikyo all night, and the sun was just beginning to rise. Looking over the edge of the high cliff at the eastern horizon was something he would have normally loved to do...it would have been a peaceful, mind clearing thing to do...but he was so distraught over the loss of his loves that nothing could have calmed him short of holding them in his arms and feeling their hearts beat resoundingly through his chest as he did so. But something told him that he would not be able to do so any time soon...not without a price anyway...Naraku would see to that...

God he was so tired. He had never walked so far without a break in his entire life. Inuyasha was running on empty. Food, water, neither seemed like they were worth a second to stop for...he only wanted them. His loves. Kagome and Kikyo.

_Kikyo abandoned me when Kagome would never have...or ever has...she said she loved me...and I believe her...but Kikyo said that she loved me as well...and that only led to pain...she seemed so scared when she called out to me for help though...like she **needed** me...was that her way of saying that she was sorry? That she wasn't mad anymore?_ He wondered sadly. Inuyasha would give anything to know the truth, but knew that it would have to wait until they were **both** out of harm's way. Then another thought popped into his head.

_I still have to choose...Kikyo is still a part of this...and I need to make a choice...but how? Damn...Miroku was right..._ Just then, a memory from early the day before returned to him.

**Memory**

_"No...we were having a good time together, and I didn't want to ruin it.** I FELT SO DAMN BAD ABOUT IT TOO!!! I FELT CONFUSED, ANGRY, SAD, AND EVEN, IN MY OWN WAY, BETRAYED, SO YES! I WENT WHERE I THOUGHT I WOULD BE AT LEAST A LITTLE WELCOME, AND I WAS!!!!!!!!!**" he yelled back at her. Kirara meowed angrily and Miroku stood in front of Sango protectively._

_"Inuyasha...I understand how you must feel...but please do not take it out on Lady Sango..." he said sternly. Inuyasha was about to attack him but Sesshoumaru grabbed his arm and held him firm._

_"I do not think it best that you harm your friends...they are good to you...more than you realize. They only try to protect Kagome...as you well understand..." he said in a low voice that sent chills down Inuyasha's spine._

_"What do you care? You do not, **cannot** possibly understand how difficult this is. But like I said, it doesn't matter now."_

_"That is where you are wrong Inuyasha." Inuyasha looked back at the monk, who had dared to speak again._

_"And how am I wrong?!" _

_Miroku winced at his tone, "Inuyasha...you never chose between them. If Kikyo hadn't...betrayed you...would you have still wound up in Kagome's time this past night? Or would you have been in the arms of Kikyo?" Inuyasha wanted so much to rip his throat out then, to make those accusing words choke him...but he knew that he was right..._

_"Feh!" was all he said as he snatched his arm back from Sesshoumaru and dashed towards the village._

**End of Memory**

Gods was that a bad memory. He had nearly clobbered his friends, thanks to Sesshoumaru he hadn't. Then later it had gotten worse...after the girls had been taken, and gods had that been ripping at his heart as it was now, they had said that Kikyo had betrayed them and had been working for Naraku...

**Memory**

_"Inuyasha...Naraku has been plotting something against us..." Miroku began, only to be interrupted._

_"Feh, when isn't he?"_

_"Listen Inuyasha, Naraku summoned Sesshoumaru to a secret meeting just after Hekele and Kagome went back to their time a day before Kachie arrived. He was trying to get Sesshoumaru to assist him, which he obviously is not. Sesshoumaru refused because he no longer wanted the Tetsusaiga. Naraku then made him a victim of his plot because he assumed that Sesshoumaru would warn us...which he did. We believe that is why-"_

_"Why wasn't I told of this?" Inuyasha asked suddenly, glaring at the three before him. Miroku sighed and shifted uncomfortably. _

_"...We didn't tell you because we didn't know how to...because Kikyo was at the meeting as well...and she agreed to help Naraku...Inuyasha...she betrayed you..." Miroku said slowly and deliberately. Inuyasha was about to lung at the monk the instant he finished speaking but Sesshoumaru held him back. Inuyasha began struggling and yelling at Miroku._

_"**NO SHE DIDN'T! KIKYO HATES NARAKU!!!!!!!! SHE WOULD NEVER, NO MATTER HOW MUCH SHE DESPISES ME, HELP NARAKU!!!!!**" he practically screamed in rage. Sesshoumaru held him firm, which proved to be surprisingly difficult._

_"Inuyasha, you worthless half-breed, you've been deceived!" he said in an enraged tone, "Do you think they would lie to you?!?" _

**End of Memory**

Kikyo couldn't have had betrayed she? Kikyo hadn't left him then...she had still loved him...why would she do such a thing...how could she?

_She couldn't have...and that's that!_ Inuyasha told himself firmly. He would be sure to rub it everyone's faces when he brought her _and_ Kagome safely home with Naraku dead...that would prove that he was right!

Inuyasha heard a slight chuckling ahead and raised his crestfallen, tired eyes to see, in the distance, the face he hated most...Naraku's. But it wasn't the sight of Naraku that angered him so...it was the sight of a bound Kagome in one hand and a bound Kikyo in the other. Both girls were gagged and couldn't speak, both had fear in their eyes, both were being held off the ground by their throats, and both were dangling off the side of a cliff with only Naraku's untrustworthy hands to keep them from falling to their certain death.

Inuyasha growled.

Kagome's POV:

Kagome opened her tired and seemingly soulless eyes when she heard Naraku's evil laugh. Her eyes widened when she saw Inuyasha, looking at her with similar eyes, ones that were turning to anger as quickly as hers were turning to fear. She could feel Naraku's rough hand clutching her throat as she dangled above...above what? Kagome looked down and to her horror she saw black. She was dangling off the side of a cliff...and it was so high up that she couldn't see the bottom.

She wanted to scream, but alas, the gag in her mouth prevented her from doing that. It was hard to breathe with Naraku's unforgiving grasp on her throat. Gods what she would give for one unlabored breath!

Knowing that her now most hated enemy was also in on the suffering that she had to endure, Kagome looked towards her right, where she saw Kikyo in a similar predicament with eyes that held fear. Fake fear, Kagome knew, but it was very convincing, and even to one that knew of her plan.

_Gods Inuyasha...help me..._ she thought painfully, noticing the way he looked at Kikyo, which was the same way he was looking at her...

"Inuyasha," she heard Naraku begin to speak, "Your friends are all safe and sound Inuyasha...all but the ones **you** failed to protect...and as you can see, they are right here, begging to be rescued..."

_You didn't fail me Inuyasha...you never have...don't let him get to you...**I** know you didn't fail... _Kagome thought, praying that Inuyasha already knew this.

"You must now make a choice Inuyasha...you must choose whom you love the most...Kagome...or Kikyo? You only get one chance...because once you make it...the other will die..." Kagome could see the pain in Inuyasha's eyes as Naraku said this...as well as uncertainty.

"You haven't got long to decide my friend..."

"I am **not** your friend!" Inuyasha growled a maddened growl as he said it. He took a step towards Naraku and Naraku took the one step he had left between him and the ledge back as well.

"If you make another move, Inuyasha, they will **both** die..." Naraku taunted evilly. Kagome heard Inuyasha growl in frustration and she couldn't help but give a small smile through her gag. Inuyasha would choose who was best for him...she only hoped that it was her...

Inuyasha's POV:

_Kagome...you've always been there for me...always...I've never...been alone with you near me..._ he thought, trying to sort through his emotions. If he took another step, Naraku would kill them. He had to choose. But in choosing...he was condemning the other to death...he couldn't do that...to either of them...

_Kikyo...was my first love...Naraku tricked you into hurting me...pinning me to that tree...if we had only trusted in each other this would never had happened. I never would have met Kagome, I never would have fallen in love with her, and I would never have to choose...but...it happened...and I did fall in love with her...so now what do I do? _He thought painfully.

_But then again...is that so bad? Kagome lit up my life...when Kikyo had all but taken it away. She loved me when I didn't think she possibly could...she allowed me into her heart even with that damned Hobo idiot had declared his affections for her **and** also with that damned wolf Koga after her affections...she still chose me...Inuyasha...the worthless hanyou...we've even shared a kiss..._ Inuyasha fondly thought, happy for a second as the memory hit him like it had only just occurred.

**Memory**

"_Inuyasha, we should get some sleep if you want me to round them up to come back with you in the morning..." Kagome said, nodding up the stairs where her friends were sleeping. Inuyasha looked at her back with me tomorrow? But you were only here a day..." he said. Kagome smiled._

_"Consider it my peace offering for forgetting tonight..." she said. Inuyasha leaned in and lightly kissed her lips, slightly shocking the girl in his arms. Kagome eagerly kissed him back, wanting to prove that she had meant every word that she had said to him. After a moment the two parted for air and Kagome blushed. Inuyasha smiled softly and lowered his gaze so that she couldn't see his own blush as he pulled her into his lap and let her lean on him. He pulled the blanket that was resting on the couch over her to keep her warm._

_"Oyasumi nasai Kagome-chan..." he said softly. Kagome blushed deeper but rested her head on his shoulder._

"Good night Inuyasha... Aishiteru..."

**End of Memory**

Gods had that been the best night of his life...just knowing...knowing that she cared for him as well...it had made everything in life fall into place for him...she thought he was worthy...of her. Kagome didn't think he was a worthless hanyou...she didn't care about that...she just cared about _him_.

He could also remember when Kikyo had kissed him too. Now _that_ memory still shocked him...he and Kikyo had been talking in the forest...he couldn't even remember what they were saying...and she had just pulled herself a little closer and kissed him... He would never forget how confused and yet how happy he had been then too...

"Inuyasha...poor Kikyo has already died for you once...will you force her to do it again?" Naraku said slyly. Inuyasha stiffened.

"But of course...Kagome has already given you her heart as well...she has also readily put herself in danger for you countless times...does she not deserve a chance at life?" Naraku continued to jest. Inuyasha just stared into space as he tried to come up with some kind of justification to choose one over the other. His heart was visibly breaking.

With the others in the throne room:

Everyone had woken up and was standing about quite anxiously. Each of them was looking over their shoulder for a portal to appear or even Naraku. They were all tense. They were all worried.

Suddenly, they heard the light clip clopping of sandals coming their way. Everyone tensed as the door to the throne room opened. Kagura and Kanna stepped in and were greeted with bittersweet smiles from the girls and slight growls from the men, even Miroku.

"Kagura...what brings you here? Now?" Hekele asked, putting her hand on Sesshoumaru's ready arm, which was about to draw his sword. He gave her a confused look and was rewarded with Hekele's I'll-tell-you-later look.

Kagura grinned slightly and held out a glass container with a blue liquid in it. "I slipped out and got a healing potion for you all; I didn't know what kind of condition you'd be in for the final battle..." she said tossing them the container.

Koga caught it instinctively, still not trusting Kagura, and sniffed it. Finding nothing harmful in the solution, he tossed it to Sesshoumaru, who sniffed it as well. Neither let Kagura or Kanna out of their site.

"Keh...it's safe..." Sesshoumaru said quietly, tossing the solution back to Koga, who was worse off than everyone else.

"Just take a swig each; it'll up your strength and heal most of your wounds...I am not sure if it'll be good enough but it'll at least help. Leave the leftovers for Kagome and Inuyasha," Kagura said. After complying with her instructions, the group was happy to find their wounds healed, or in Koga's case, considerably better off.

"What _has_ become of Inuyasha and Kagome?" Sesshoumaru asked Kagura out of the blue. She looked at the group critically before replying.

"Naraku has taken Kikyo and Kagome to a dimension just moments ago. They will be awaiting Inuyasha there. He wished to see how you all did with your 'tests' before attending to those two...Kanna's mirror can see all that happens everywhere, and he has been using it as a window into the dimensions..."

"Can...we use it as a window as well?" Sango asked. Kanna nodded.

"It is why I have come..." Suddenly there was a flash of light in the mirror and then an image. The group got closer and Kagura turned to view through it curiously. What everyone saw worried them.

Naraku was holding both Kagome and Kikyo by the throat off the ledge of a cliff, ready to drop them at a moment's notice. Inuyasha was standing a good fifteen feet away. Naraku could be heard taunting him with their lives.

"_Inuyasha...poor Kikyo has already died for you once...will you force her to do it again?" _

"_But of course...Kagome has already given you her heart as well...she has also readily put herself in danger for you countless times...does she not deserve a chance at life?"_

"It seems that he is forcing Inuyasha to choose...who lives and who dies..." Kagura mused grimly. Everyone nodded, the shock of the sight not wearing off. They silently prayed to kami for Inuyasha to choose correctly. They watched intently as the living drama played out before them...

Inuyasha's POV:

"Inuyasha...why not choose Kikyo? If you defeat me then you can use the Shikon no Tama to restore her life..." Naraku prodded. Inuyasha scowled at him hatefully.

"If you choose Kagome and defeat me, she will eventually leave you for her time...just as Hekele will abandon Sesshoumaru and the brat and how Kachie will do the same to Koga...once the Shikon no Tama disappears, as it will once you make your wish, they will have to choose a place and stay there forever...why would they choose to remain here? You cannot force your love to stay...and she will take advantage of that and leave you..._Kikyo_ would not, however, because she has no other life to attend to..."

"Would you shut-up?!?" Inuyasha all but screamed at Naraku, who gave him an amused grin.

_He is right though...once we make a wish on the Sacred Jewel...it will disappear...and then they **will** have to choose where to live...Gods...do Sesshoumaru and Koga realize this?! They have loves resting on this as well! But if I could bring Kikyo back to life with the jewel...then why couldn't I make it so that we'd always be able to travel through the well? Even without shards? Damn! Not another choice!_ Inuyasha thought, bewildered.

"But of course...Kagome can accept you as a human, hanyou, _or_ demon...while Kikyo cannot...she has also abandoned you has she not?" the evil hanyou continued.

_How does he know about what happened between Kikyo and I? And that I turn human for that matter?_ Inuyasha asked himself mentally. He wasn't sure but it gave him an odd feeling...and it wasn't a good one either...

Kagome's POV:

_Inuyasha...I hope you understand how much I love you...I know I've said it before but still...I hope you understand that I don't care about you being anything but who you are...hanyou demon, human, whatever makes you happiest...I'll still love you..._ Kagome thought weakly.

Her strength was beginning to leave her after dangling there for nearly five minutes. She had gone without food and water for as long as the rest of her companions, and her body felt so abused as well. She had been roughly handled, but not once struck.

_I guess they want me in as best condition as they can have me in...probably so Inuyasha doesn't figure out that Kikyo wasn't really kidnapped..._ she thought to herself.

Kagome suddenly felt so helpless. She was beginning to lose hope too. Inuyasha looked so lost in front of her...like he was waiting for a sign or something.

"Inuyasha...I haven't got all day..." Naraku said in an amused tone. Before Inuyasha appeared an hourglass on a table. The sands began to fall.

"You have five more minutes Inuyasha...then...they **both** die..." Naraku informed him and, in a round about way, Kagome.

**_I wanted you to know...that I love the way you laugh..._**

**_I wanna hold you high and steal your pain...away..._**

**_I keep your photograph...and I know it serves me well!_**

**_I wanna hold you high and steal...your pain..._**

The song had just popped into her head. 'Broken' by Seether and Amy Lee, (the lead singer of Evanescence.) _Hekele must be getting to me..._ she thought as the chorus rang through her head.

**_'Cuz I'm broken...when I'm open..._**

_**And I don't feel like...I am strong enough...**_

_**'Cuz I'm broken...when I'm lonesome!**_

_**And I don't wanna feel right...when you're gone away...**_

****The next line made Kagome smile grimly inside; it reminded her of how she felt at this moment.

**_You've gone away...you don't feel me here...anymore..._**

_He'll choose Kikyo...he loves her more anyway..._ she thought to herself.

**_The worst is over now...and we can breathe again..._**

_**I wanna hold you high, you steal my pain...away...**_

_**There's so much left to learn...and no one left to fight!**_

_**I wanna hold you high and steal your pain!**_

_God if that isn't the truth...Inuyasha makes me so happy...and all I want to do is the same for him..._ she thought happily, finding a small joy in her horrid predicament.

**_'Cuz I'm broken...when I'm open..._**

_**And I don't feel like...I am strong enough...**_

_**'Cuz I'm broken...when I'm lonesome!**_

And I don't wanna feel right...when you're gone away... 

The music of the song pounded through her heart, though it was only through memory. It gave Kagome an amazing feeling, making her heart beat in rhythm to it. It seemed to her a song from the soul...but why had it popped into her head? Was this her mind's way of telling her not to be afraid of death? Of not being chosen? _Who knows...but it did...and it **is** helping to ease the pain..._

She watched as the sands fell in the hourglass. She only had about two more minutes...damn was she worried!

**_'Cuz I'm broken...when I'm open..._**

_**And I don't feel like...I am strong enough...**_

_**'Cuz I'm broken...when I'm lonesome!**_

And I don't wanna feel right...when you're gone away... 

_God! Is this damn song written from my very being? I feel so weak! Like even at my strongest I'm unable to help anyone! And I feel even weaker when I'm alone! And if Inuyasha doesn't choose me...I know I would definitely NOT feel right..._ she thought to herself.

**_'Cuz I'm broken...when I'm open..._**

_**And I don't feel like...I am strong enough...**_

_**'Cuz I'm broken...when I'm lonesome!**_

**_And I don't wanna feel right...when you're gone away..._**

She saw the last of the sands fall. She felt Naraku's grip loosen. She saw Kikyo's hidden smirk.

"Now Inuyasha...is the moment of truth," she heard Naraku say. Kagome closed her eyes in fear as she felt her throat being released from Naraku's fist. She felt herself falling, as if it were happening in slow motion, and decided to take what she thought was her last look at her love. His face was one of complete pain as he ran towards the center of the cliff, directly between the two. Smiling at him one last time, Kagome closed her eyes as she fell.

**_You've gone away...you don't feel me here...anymore..._**

With the others in the throne room:

"Kami is he going to let them **both** fall?!?" Kagura yelled angrily as they saw Naraku loosen his grip.

"No, he runs for the middle...we will know of his choice when he returns back up..." Koga said tensely, fear apparent in his voice. Kachie placed her head on his shoulder. She knew he cared for Kagome...but she was secure in the fact that he cared for her more. She would never leave him...for he would never leave her...she knew this.

"Kagome has a look of bliss on her face...what could keep her so calm at a time like this?" Hekele asked, scared for her sister-like friend. She was also wondering about what Naraku had said. Abandon Sesshoumaru and Rin?!? Never! She loved them too much...and she would find a way to be with them...just as Kagome would stay forever with Inuyasha and Kachie with Koga.

Sesshoumaru tightened his grip on her hand, which had subconsciously sought comfort in his. He had gladly given it. "Let us hope that it is because she knows that he will choose correctly," he said.

The entire group nodded as they stood there in shock and fear as they saw their friend fall, as Naraku disappeared and re-appeared out of Inuyasha's way, and as Inuyasha reached the edge of the cliff. They saw Kagome's faint smile before they lost sight of her over the cliff's edge.

Inuyasha's POV:

As Kagome fell she looked to him with both pleading and yet strangely satisfied eyes. He knew he could only save one of them. He just didn't know who...

He let his body do as it wished when he reached the edge. He felt it twist him in the direction of one of the women he loved. He knew whom to save. He knew who was best for him. Now to reach her...

Inuyasha streamlined his body so he could easily catch up to the raven-haired girl of his dreams. Falling at her side he wrapped a protective arm around her body and shot an apologetic look towards the other, falling woman. Instead of receiving a look that told of sorrow, he received one of hate...then everything clicked. It all made sense...Inuyasha knew then how Naraku had known of his weakness, and how he had known about Kikyo's leaving him. Inuyasha had nearly fallen into a trap he had been previously warned of. He had nearly chosen wrong...

Inuyasha drew his Tetsusaiga and thrust it into the cliff side, slowing their descent. After what seemed like forever, they stopped. He looked to the girl in his arms as two shocked chocolate eyes looked back at him. He loved those eyes...as well as the amazing woman they belonged to...

"Kagome...I choose you..."

Kagome's POV:

"Kagome...I choose you..." he said. There, looking into her eyes, Inuyasha had said that he had chosen her. Kagome couldn't have been happier. She smiled as Inuyasha juggled her in his grasp until he could effectively use his hand to pry the gag from her mouth. Her now visible smile seemed to sooth him.

"...Inuyasha...thank you..." she said, clinging to him quite literally for dear life. Inuyasha winced at her raspy tone...Naraku had held her by the neck for far too long. The inside of her throat felt raw and it hurt to speak. But her words were worth saying, in her own opinion anyway. She saw him smile at her before feeling his sword slip a few inches. The jerk frightened them both. She squealed and hugged him tighter, if at all possible while hanging off the edge of a cliff for dear life...

"Kagome...I'm sorry..." he said, holding her tighter with his arm. Kagome gave him a confused look and saw more pain in his eyes.

"What is it...you chose me...why are you-"

"I'm too weak to hold on...I haven't had food or water in hours and I've used up most of my energy looking for you and...and I don't think that I can get us back up there and out of harm's way..." he said looking ashamed, as if he had failed. Kagome could see the self-loathing in his eyes and refused to allow him to feel that way. She leaned up as far as she could and placed a gentle kiss just below his lower lip, not being able to reach any higher. Inuyasha gave her a confused look as he struggled to hold onto his sword and keep it from slipping.

"You've never failed me Inuyasha...never...and as long as I know that you love me...everything else's ok...I mean that..." she said happily. Inuyasha looked her over for a moment before speaking.

"Are you sure?" he asked. Kagome nodded.

"Positive..." At this, Inuyasha took a deep breath and yanked his sword out of the cliff. If they were to die...they would die as warriors...they would not sit and wait patiently for death to claim them...they would meet it head on.

The pair began to fall and they closed their eyes, holding each other tightly. Neither noticed a light colored portal form beneath them...and took them home...

With Naraku:

The evil hanyou watched all of this from a distance above on the edge of the cliff. He looked to his left and stared down towards the bottom of the cliff.

"I am truly sorry Kikyo...but it was obviously not meant to be my dear..." he said, only half meaning his words.

He stepped away from the edge and left through a portal of black to his chambers. He would wait there for a bit before attacking. He would send someone else to congratulate his enemies' victories...

With everyone else in the throne room:

Hekele started pacing frantically back and forth on the wooden floor, Sango was holding onto Miroku's robes for comfort, and Kachie had her arms wrapped around Koga's shoulders from behind. The three were in quite the state of worry.

"What is taking Inuyasha so long to re-appear?!" Kachie asked. Hekele continued to pace back and forth.

"...Maybe he chose Kikyo and...and she killed him..." she said fearfully. Sesshoumaru reached her side and ceased her pacing by wrapping an arm around her protectively, holding her close to him once again.

Sango made a slight whimper and Miroku held her closer, "I pray that isn't the case..."

"As we all do monk..." Koga said, touching one of Kachie's hands as a comfort offering. Kagura's already downcast face turned even grimmer as the seconds ticked by...as did Kanna's.

Suddenly, above Hekele and Sesshoumaru, appeared a light colored portal. Sesshoumaru instinctively pulled himself and Hekele out of the way seconds before Inuyasha and Kagome fell through the portal and landed painfully on the floor of Naraku's throne room.

"Damn it! Why can't falling to our death be less painful?!?" Inuyasha yelled angrily. The two were in a jumble and seemed to be unable to untangle themselves for a moment. Relived to see their friends and their slightly comical entrance, Hekele, Sango, and Kachie tore away from their loves and threw themselves on the pair on the floor, each squeezing them painfully.

"What the hell happened?"

"What took you so long?"

"Why did you wait so long to save her?"

"What were you thinking just jumping over like that?"

"Why were you smiling when he let go?!"

"Why didn't you climb back to the top?"

"Shut-up!!!" Inuyasha put a stop to the questioning girls and shoved them off of him and Kagome, who was shaking her head in a knowing way. Inuyasha used his claws to unbind Kagome's bruised wrists and quickly inspected them.

"Took ya long enough." Inuyasha and Kagome turned to see Kagura and Kanna standing next to Sesshoumaru and Koga. Kagura threw them a nearly empty glass container with blue liquid in it.

"It'll heal your wounds...even ask these guys, they already took it..." Inuyasha, who held the bottle, gave them a questioning look. Seeing them nod, he took a gulp and handed it to Kagome.

"Well, it smells safe...and they aren't dead yet..." he said, already feeling the effects of the potion. Kagome rolled her eyes and drank the last of the blue fluid. She felt her throat heal and was relieved when the bruises on her wrists seemed to fade. Her wounded abdomen was in less pain as well.

"Thank you Kagura..." she said to the wind witch, who was currently making her way to the girl.

"You are welcome, but I fear with this test finished that we must be leaving before Naraku realizes what we have done. You understand don't you?"

"Of course...we don't want anything to happen to you to before we can repay the favor..." Hekele said, once again at Sesshoumaru's side. Kagura gave her a grim smile and nodded.

She stood in front of Kagome and Inuyasha and extended her hand out to the miko-in-training. Giving her a genuine smile, one that reflected how little evil actually was buried deep inside her, Kagura spoke.

"I want to congratulate you on proving Naraku wrong...and for finally getting your man..." Kagome blushed at this and took her hand, shaking it nervously. Kagura smirked as Inuyasha growled in annoyance; obviously the potion had restored quite a bit of his strength if he felt like arguing...

"Since when have you been a good guy?" he asked sarcastically. Kagura grinned; maybe the idiot hanyou and his friends weren't so bad...

"Since we felt like it...good luck to you all." She walked towards the doorway towards her chambers, following Kanna.

"And you two as well..." Sango said kindly. Kagura paused at the door and looked at the group a final time.

"...I do not know what is keeping Naraku...but I know he is up to _something_...watch your backs...as we can no longer help you..." she said in a warning, yet slightly concerned tone. Everyone nodded as she disappeared through the door.

"So...Sesshoumaru?" Inuyasha said. He felt like information was being withheld from him on why Kagura and Kanna were helping him, but he decided not to ask. Instead, he decided to break the ice by making the group feel uncomfortable. And since Koga had already showed his affection for Kachie and everyone had know that Miroku loved Sango, Hekele and Sesshoumaru were the perfect victims...

"Yes?" asked the demon lord cautiously, knowing that his half-brother was up to no good. He smelled of mischief.

"How could you two get so 'cuddly' in such a short period of time?" Inuyasha asked, referring to the way Sesshoumaru had his arm once again about Hekele's shoulders protectively. She had wrapped one of her arms around him in a sort of embrace, which didn't help Sesshoumaru come up with any retaliation.

So he just shrugged it off to annoy the hanyou, "And...your point being...what?" Inuyasha caught on and smirked at his older half brother.

Suddenly, a scythe flew out at them and it took half the reflexes the two men had to move them and their loves out of the way in time. The scythe, embedding itself in the wall between the four, was on a long metal chain, which led to the owner of the tool...Kohaku.

"KOHAKU!!!" Sango yelled, wanting to get to her younger brother and free him from Naraku's control. Miroku pulled Sango behind him and readied his staff as Kohaku yanked the scythe from the wall and aimed it at her. But then he froze, as if waiting for something. Suddenly, to the right of the group appeared in a heap, their missing weapons. Sango's boomerang, Kagome's bow and quiver of arrows, as well as Hekele's katana and sais were all littering the corner. As if on cue, Kohaku began his onslaught as the group of people made a mad dash for the weapons.

_Naraku's messing with us..._ Sango thought angrily as she grabbed her boomerang and used it to deflect the scythe from the small group of girls.

_He doesn't think that we can beat him even with our weapons..._ Hekele mused angrily as she readied her katana and tucked her sais in her belt loops.

_Let's hope he's wrong..._ Kagome prayed as she notched an arrow in her bow. All this while the men had been attempting to deflect more of Kohaku's deadly blows without hurting him fatally, knowing that none of this was his fault. Looking into his eyes they could only see one thing peering back at them menacingly. Naraku.

Rewind a few minutes and return to the dimension from Kikyo's POV:

He had chosen Kagome. Inuyasha...that...that bastard!!! How could he abandon her like that?! And for what? A woman who would probably leave him? Smart choice idiot...

"And not that I am jealous for I hate him so, but the idiot will die of heart break...and even though he has _never_ held my heart...I will be the one to break it for him..." she said as she closed her eyes as the bottomless pit began to grow even darker. Suddenly, her eyes burst open and glowed blood red and stared at the disappearing edge of the cliff.

_And you Naraku? For abandoning me when I was told I would be saved if the hanyou miss chose? I hope they kill you._ She thought spitefully as she sprouted black wings and as black markings appeared below her eyes. Her wings spread and carried her back to the top of the cliff effortlessly. A dark purple ball of energy appeared in her hand and opened a portal back to the real world.

_You will never know I am there...and when they finish you off Naraku...they will see my true form and power!!!_

Me- So...was that ok?

Sesshoumaru- It was great! The way you added the wind witch and Kanna in

there was ingenious...

Me- You've been talking to Kachie again haven't you?

Sesshoumaru- Well, you put me on a leash so I can't talk to anyone else...

Me- Hmmm, good point...ok then!

Sesshoumaru- Damn...I almost got the leash off...

Me- Not on your life lover boy...

Inuyasha- I thought it was awesome!!! I got Kagome!!!

Kagome- And your psycho ass ex-girlfriend is gonna kill us all!!!

Kachie- Wow...you've got faith...

Kagome- Yep...but not the good kind...

Daisuke- (poofs into fic) Hiya!

Dark- (in Daisuke's head) You moron...wrong fic!

Daisuke- Oops...sorry...(poofs out of fic)

Inuyasha- What the hell was that?

Me- That was the result of 18 episodes of DNAngel in a to

my good friend Kachie...

Inuyasha- (panics) You aren't gonna forget us and abandon us and write a fic

about them are you?!?!

Sesshoumaru- And you aren't gonna replace me with that red-headed shrimp are

you?

Me- Never!!! I am just on a current obsession with seeing that series since

Kachie has the whole thing on DVD...but Daisuke _is_ kind of cute...

Sesshoumaru- What?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

Inuyasha- Uh-oh...Sesshoumaru got replaced...

Me- Nonsense! Sesshoumaru is _way_ better than him! He's handsome, sexy,

smart, bold, sweet, and is a total and complete biscuit! No...no...wait...he's

not a biscuit...he's a chocolate éclair!!! Yummy!!!

Kagome- Ummm...R&R if you want her to get her head out of boys are like

candy world...


	16. Freedom and Death

Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love 

Ok, this chapter is dedicated to a very special person, who got a whopping **_100%_** on my quiz!!!!! The problem is...my computer screwed up and deleted your e-mail and I can't remember who you are!!!!! Was it you, Spam-chan? If you tell me who you are, I will send you your prize shortly!

Also, Kachie's computer has been acting VERY screwy, and hers is the only computer with a scanner that I can get to, which is why no one has received their prizes as of yet. Believe me, we are trying, VERY HARD!!!

Ok, next topic. Certain reviewers have been asking for me to do certain things with my story. I am sorry, but since my story has already gotten a plot to it and I have devised a method of getting it there that I like, I will not change it. For me to change my story would be like asking J.K. Rowling to make Harry Potter a girl and Clive Cussler to no longer add himself into his Dirk Pitt novels as a very minor character.

Even though the ideas I have been given aren't quite as bad as those, (on the contrary, they are quite good,) but it would make me feel the same. I wouldn't feel as good about it, and what I love about this story is the amazing feeling it and my reviewers give me. Please, no one be offended; if I weren't so dead set on what I wanted to do, I would use your ideas in a heartbeat, hands down.

Now, I have one last thing before my disclaimer and chapter. This chapter is going to be both happy and sad, but mostly sad. In the next two chapters, a lot of bad things are going to happen to a lot of good people, but please, I do not want flames. My ending is going to be a happy one. **_EVERYONE_** will be happy. So do not flame the authoress. That makes my confidence level do a U-turn...

Disclaimer: What? You think an American blond idiot could possibly own Inuyasha and friends? Ha! I pity the Lawyers who think such a thing!

Lawyers- Hey! We just got back from vacation!!! We didn't do anything yet...

Me- Keyword: **_YET_**...

**Freedom and Death**

Sango dodged Kohaku's scythe for what seemed like the hundredth time. She was getting tired, as was everyone else. No one wanted to hurt Kohaku, but if this kept up much longer, they might have to...

It had taken a minute for everyone to notice Kohaku's eyes. They had always seemed to be glazed over before...but now they had a slightly red glow to them. How could Sango not have noticed it when he had first made his appearance known?

"Miroku! Watch out!" Kachie yelled as she ran past him, dodging another of Kohaku's death swipes. Miroku did so as well and was narrowly missed. Kachie continued towards the boy with her new battle-axe in hopes of separating him from his weapon. No luck.

As Kohaku dodged one of Inuyasha's attempts to do the same thing, he swung his weapon at an odd angle, causing it to nearly take off Kachie's arm. Now sporting a large cut on her shoulder, Kachie had to withdraw to catch her breath. Koga gladly stepped out in her place and began his own onslaught of kicks and punches.

"Kagome, stay by Kachie for now, you need to save your energy to purify Naraku..." Hekele said as she passed by where Kachie had retreated next to Kagome. Kagome nodded but clutched her arrows, just in case. Something wasn't right here. Something seemed out of place. But Kagome didn't have time to concentrate on those nagging thoughts; she had to focus on the battle in case she was needed.

Hekele saw an opening on Kohaku's back and ran towards it, thinking that she could possibly restrain him if she could get behind him. She caught him by surprise. She knocked his weapon out of his hand and grabbed him. She wrapped her arms under his armpits and laced her fingers around his neck, effectively limiting his movements for a moment.

Naraku focused on the battle through Kohaku's eyes. He could control the boy with ease with the complete jewel in his hand. He could put his own essence into the boy's body and increase his strength and speed. It was quite amusing to watch his enemies attempt to disarm him. What they didn't realize was that it was as if they were trying to disarm Naraku himself.

_How pathetic..._ he mused. He then turned to his servants, Kagura and Kanna, "You are to go and assist Kohaku in the battle, Kagura, and Kanna, you will remain in the shadows and steal their souls." The two female demons bowed and exited the room in a hurry.

"How are we to deceive Naraku now?" Kanna asked. Kagura shook her head.

"We can only hope that his hearing isn't as good as his sight right now...I can whisper the fact that this is an act into their ears, but after that we are on their own. You will try to steal their souls, but before you do, be sure they see the reflection of your mirror, so when they dodge it, it can look completely accidental..."

"I will try my best Kagura, good luck..."

"You as well..." the wind witch said as she burst into the throne room and Kanna disappeared into the shadows.

Kohaku skillfully threw Hekele off his back and across the room, forcing her to the ground painfully. Before she could stand and move out of the way, Kohaku retrieved his scythe and threw it towards her. Luckily, before it hit her, Sesshoumaru blocked it with his Tokijin, causing sparks to fly as steel collided with steel. Hekele took the chance to get up and retrieve her sword.

"Thanks!" she called to Sesshoumaru as she made another attempt towards Kohaku. Sesshoumaru only nodded slightly in acknowledgement as he too went after the boy carefully. No human was strong enough to throw a person of Hekele's weight as far as Kohaku had. Obviously, Naraku was giving the boy some extra power. Who knew what else was hidden from them.

Suddenly, a huge gust of wind sliced in the space between Sesshoumaru and the once again battling Hekele. Sesshoumaru looked up and saw Kagura. She had a grim sneer plastered onto her face.

"Lord of the Western Lands...it is time we battle..." she shouted. Sesshoumaru growled low in his throat as she came at him with a katana. He met her attack and blocked her blade.

"Treacherous wench," he hissed. Kagura gave him a serious look.

"Not really, Naraku sent us, of course this has to look real."

"Us? Where is Kanna?" Sesshoumaru asked, attacking her with his sword.

Kagura blocked it with a bit of difficulty, "In the shadows; she is to steal your souls. But before she uses her mirror she is going to warn the subject by reflecting light for them to see so they can dodge her."

"How is Naraku overseeing the battle if she is here with us?" Sesshoumaru questioned, lunging at her meanwhile.

"He is controlling Kohaku is he not? He is giving the boy part of his consciousness and strength in order to fight the lot of you. The reason he can maneuver so well is because Naraku is willing him to, and can see everything Kohaku sees," Kagura informed, dodging Sesshoumaru's lunge carefully. Sesshoumaru gave her a slight nod, one that was barely visible even to her, and lunged once more.

Sango was about to try another attempt at Kohaku when a shining in the shadows caught her eye. Knowing that Kanna had probably entered the room along with Kagura, Sango jumped back, just in time to dodge the mirror's attack. She still held her soul.

_A warning...she warned me with the reflection first...this thing with her and Kagura is staged...good...but how does Naraku know what is happening?_ She thought, advancing on her younger brother once again. If only she could restrain him somehow...

Miroku dodged Kanna's mirror and came to the same conclusion as Sango. What he did not understand was that if the demon child was here...how Naraku could see the battle, he had thought that she had needed to lend him her mirror...

_Apparently we were mistaken..._he thought grimly. He saw as Kanna then 'went after' Hekele, who had withdrawn from the reach of Kohaku's scythe for a moment. She had, like him, no trouble dodging the mirror. It was then that he was sure that everything was an act; Kanna's never missed before._ So how is he seeing this?_

Naraku growled. So...they were betraying him were they? How predictable...

_They think that I will be fooled so easily? That I do not know of their battling tactics? Kagura never uses her katana and Kanna never misses. I can see the reflection of light in her mirror every time she aims at one of those imbeciles. She is signaling them!_ Naraku was enraged. He stood and made his way out the door. If they were going to play _that_ game, then he would have to teach them a lesson...

_They **will** know pain._

Inuyasha kept a close eye on Kagome and Kachie as he battled. At this point, he and everyone else had pretty much understood what Kanna and Kagura were doing. It was Kohaku that he was worried about. It seemed that he could match the strength and speed of whomever attacked him. And Inuyasha knew that Kohaku had never been_ that_ strong before.

The doors to the throne room flew open and everyone froze. Standing there was Naraku. Kagura and Kanna visibly paled. They knew why he had come so soon...

"You must be punished," was all he said before he extended his hands and formed the shape of one heart in each. One heart had a thin white film over it. It was Kanna's soul.

There was no warning before he squeezed the two hearts and Kagura and Kanna clutched the spots on their chests where they should have been in pain. They collapsed to the floor instantly and fought to keep their consciousness.

"You betrayed me for the last time Kagura...and you've influenced Kanna to do so as well, you ought to be ashamed..." he said in an almost playful voice as he squeezed their hearts all the harder.

Sango threw her boomerang at Naraku in hopes of distracting him. Naraku, however, was not to be so easily taken advantage of. He leapt halfway across the room from his position and landed as gracefully as though he had merely taken a step. He resumed Kanna and Kagura's torture.

Kohaku began his onslaught once again as Naraku's eyes glowed red, matching his own.

_He saw everything through Kohaku's eyes!_ Sango growled to herself angrily. She was done allowing her younger brother to be controlled by this, this bastard of a demon!!!

Hekele watched as Sango went after Naraku with her boomerang. He toyed with her for a moment or so before striking her with a stray tentacle. Hekele rushed to her side and tried to stop the bleeding that was now coming from her left hip. Naraku came up behind her, and having absorbed the hearts back into his body, he attempted to grab at her throat. Noticing him at the last moment, Hekele kicked him in the stomach, not that it helped much.

Naraku grabbed her by the throat and squeezed it tightly. Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha were dealing with Kohaku, but Miroku was on his way to her aid. He could not use his Kazaana for fear of Naraku widening it, but he vowed to still be useful.

Hekele was aware of her vision blurring as Naraku's hand squeezed even tighter on her throat. She was aware of the wind picking up and suddenly being released. She fell to the ground and clutched at her throat, as if to make sure she still had one. She looked up in time to see a slightly injured Naraku form the two hearts and soul in his hands and squeeze down on them. Hekele glanced and saw Kagura fall behind her; Kanna fell nearby, having directed her mirror at Naraku.

_They saved me..._she thought to herself, looking up at Naraku, who was still mere feet from her. She decided to return the favor. She glanced around quickly, making sure that Kohaku was occupied, and took her sais from her belt loops. She waited as Naraku took a subconscious step towards her, still holding the hearts and staring at his two victims. Taking the only chance she was sure to get, she raised her weapons and swiftly sliced at Naraku's wrists. He yelled in surprise and pain, having thought her unconscious or even dead. Hekele was satisfied to see his hands detach from his body and fall to the floor, hearts, soul, and all.

Naraku's yell/scream had surprised everyone and they had looked at him in shock. When they saw an injured Hekele holding her weapons and his detached hands on the ground, they mildly understood what had happened.

Naraku's body formed two hands where the old ones were sliced off and he snapped at Hekele.

"Do you think me so weak as to be affected so badly by such an attack?!" he yelled, causing Sesshoumaru to run towards the two out of worry.

Hekele smirked, "But you aren't whole..." she said, still half lying on the ground. Naraku was about to slap her when everyone noticed a bright light coming from Naraku's dead hands. The hearts that were imprisoned there glowed a gorgeous light blue and floated to their owners. Kagura was in shock as her heart disappeared into her chest and she felt it beating...she was finally free...

Kanna's heart and soul flowed into her body and she felt whole for the first time in her life. Her pure, snow colored hair turned a slight blond and then darkened to a very light brown, instead of being flat and plain it almost gained a mind of it's own and became full of childish waves, and her emotionless orbs turned a sea green. She was lovely. Her soul made her complete, both inside and out. Inuyasha was even able to detect an aroma...and neither she nor Kagura had a trace of Naraku's scent on them in the least...

"You...you BITCH!" Naraku yelled as he returned his attention to Hekele, rage filling his eyes. Hekele's eyes held a grim smile in them. She knew she was in for a bit of pain, but the fact that Kanna and Kagura were free and could help her friends made it better...

_I hope you know what you mean to me Sesshoumaru...and Rin as well... Aishiteru...both of you..._ she thought as Naraku prepared to strike at her and as she recalled the meaningful embrace between her, Sesshoumaru, and Rin from earlier...

**F**_l_**a**_s_**h**_b_**a**_c_**k**

_**"We'll get home soon Rin...I promise..." she said soothingly. Rin snuggled into her hug and nodded. When she was finally released, she jumped into Sesshoumaru's arms for an embrace from him as well.**_

"Sesshoumaru-sama saved us...Rin told Hekele-chan that everything would be ok!" she said as she squeezed him tightly. Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at Hekele, who blushed in embarrassment that she had not had more faith. Sesshoumaru smiled slightly and pulled her into the embrace with his tail, which he also wrapped around Rin. Hekele smiled as well and wrapped her arms around the two. She felt happy and safe in the embrace, like nothing bad could happen. It was a good feeling.

_E_**n**_d _**F**_l_**a**_s_**h**_b_**a**_c_**k**

Sesshoumaru was mere feet from where Hekele lay with Naraku's enraged form hovering above her when it happened. It had only taken him seconds to get there. That was how quick it was. But those seconds weren't even enough. Sesshoumaru watched, almost as if time was suspended for this scene, as Naraku's arm formed a sharp tentacle and thrust itself through Hekele's already abused throat. She was dead.

Still running, Sesshoumaru thrust a hateful blow at Naraku, his eyes blazing red and his markings jagged and angry. Naraku dodged, barely, having needed a second or so to dislodge his tentacle from its unfortunate victim. Sesshoumaru swung his sword and dodged as Naraku thrust the same bloody tentacle that had killed Hekele at him. He sliced off the appendage and growled when Naraku simply grew another.

"You really must do better than that demon lord. You cannot avenge the love of your life by slicing off my limbs as she did..." Naraku sneered. Sesshoumaru merely snarled and continued their deadly dance.

It had happened so quickly...mere seconds...it actually took everyone else a moment to allow the scene register in their minds. All they had seen was a blindingly blue light as Kagura and Kanna became whole. And when the light was gone a split second later...Hekele was lying on the ground, dead, and Sesshoumaru was battling mercilessly with Naraku.

Kagome was in tears and Kachie was as close to it as possible without actually crying. She would not cry, she would keep Kagome safe and comfort her, but she would not cry...not yet. She turned her attention to Inuyasha and Kohaku, who had begun to fight once more. Kohaku showed no signs of tiring...

Kanna and Kagura were in a small state of shock as they saw Hekele's lifeless body on the other side of the room. She had...just saved them...made them whole...and now she was dead. The first in Naraku's blood bath...

Miroku was helping Sango away from Hekele's fallen body while attempting to treat her wound as best he could at the same time. It was bleeding badly.

"Sango, are you all right? Do you know how deep the wound is?" he asked, ripping a good portion of his robes so that he could bandage her up. Sango tore her gaze from Hekele's body and gave Miroku a tired smile.

"It is deep Miroku...it feels like he nearly ran me through..." she took her time speaking. She suddenly was feeling dizzy from all of her blood loss.

"Sango, keep your eyes open...please stay awake!" Miroku was beginning to panic...Sango didn't look like she could hold on much longer. The wound was obviously more serious than he could see.

Sango tried her best to comply. It was getting increasingly difficult to do so, however. She didn't know if it was the wound that was killing her or the fact that she had failed to save her brother like she had sworn to do.

She watched as Koga carefully walked over to Kachie, to check on her. Sango noticed that Kachie was staring at her...with pain in her eyes. She knew. She knew Sango was going to die. Sango gave her and Kagome a heart-felt smile, as if trying to reassure them. Kagome's own orbs were torn between her battling comrades and her dying friend, but Sango knew that she cared. She knew that Kagome would be the real hero too. After all, she would purify the jewel and everything would be ok in the end...

Sango looked back to Miroku, who was hurriedly bandaging her wound, "Miroku, I'm dying..." Miroku actually shot her a glare.

"No you're not. You are going to outlive me Sango, you are going to die old and happy, not here in this battle!" he snapped. Sango laughed and slowly reached out to touch his hand.

"Miroku, you know I love you, right?" she asked. Miroku gave her a hard look.

"Of course I know Sango...and you know that I love you enough to keep you alive, right?" he said, knowing where she was going with her question. He squeezed her hand tightly and kissed it.

Sango smiled as her eyes became clouded. Her wound didn't hurt anymore either. She was well aware that she was bleeding to death even more so because of how cold she felt. Sango was aware of Miroku's pained sigh and felt his shaky arms as he lifted her useless body close to his in a loving embrace. She recalled the warm feeling he had given her only hours ago when he had saved her from that soul freezing demon in Naraku's dimension. She felt it now as well. She also remembered their kiss...

**F**_l_**a**_s_**h**_b_**a**_c_**k**

"That kiss meant nothing to me...I need for you to know that..." he said slowly. Sango snorted and tried to pull away.

_**"And why do you need for me to know that, Houshi-sama?" she asked, hurt woven in her words.**_

_**Miroku tilted her head to face him, leaned in, and kissed her on the lips, completely taking her by surprise. After a second she kissed him back, somehow feeling secure that it wasn't a trick. When they parted he tilted her head and gave her a kiss on the forehead before grasping her face in both of his hands and making her stare him straight in the eyes.**_

**_"Because I need you to believe me when I say that that kiss meant the world to me..."_**

_E_**n**_d _**F**_l_**a**_s_**h**_b_**a**_c_**k**

Miroku pondered everything that he had been through with this woman in his arms. This woman who he loved. This woman who was dying.

All Miroku could think about were their more recent loving exchanges, and the joy he had felt when she had not rejected his kiss or his affections.

His only regret was that she hadn't known of his feelings sooner...

Inuyasha was thrown from Kohaku and he landed near Koga, Kachie, and Kagome. He shook his head as if to stop it's spinning and looked around at his friends.

"How are they holding up Koga?" he asked, standing up and readying his sword. Koga turned from Kachie to regard him.

"Kachie's shoulder is still bleeding, but I think it's slowed down some...and Kagome's..." he trailed off, following the said girl's gaze over to Miroku and Sango once more. It was then that Inuyasha saw them.

Sango was lying in Miroku's arms, dying, and Miroku seemed to be out of it...in shock. Inuyasha's own heart wretched at the sight.

Sesshoumaru was still battling with Naraku, Inuyasha mused, and he seemed to be getting tired. Naraku wasn't even breaking a sweat.

_It's that damn jewel...he has all of it's power at his command...Midoriko must be rolling in her grave...sort of..._ Inuyasha thought, recalling how the jewel had been formed. He returned to his battle with Kohaku as the knowledge flashed through his mind.

Midoriko, who was the first Miko ever, had been battling hundreds of demons. She was exhausted and was losing. Suddenly, when defeat seemed imminent, the Shikon no Tama had burst through her chest and swallowed the demons' souls, as well as most of her own. Now, after all these years, within the Shikon no Tama still rages that final battle, and only when the jewel has been used or completely purified would the battle ever end, and the last of Midoriko's soul freed. The piece of Midoriko's soul that was already free was elevated to the level of a goddess in the heavens.

Inuyasha was snapped completely to reality when Kohaku once again threw him away. Inuyasha didn't have time to dodge before Kohaku threw his weapon.

Miroku gasped in pain as he felt cold metal protrude his back and dig itself into him. He held Sango's failing form tighter, out of instinct and pain. He was not aware of her own pained gasp as she felt the same sudden rush of pain, having been stabbed once again. The weapon had gone completely through Miroku's back/chest, and into Sango. Miroku, knowing full well what had happened held back his scream of pain as the scythe was pulled from its lodge in Sango and himself. He buried his face in the crook of Sango's neck and whimpered and pained whimper.

He could not hear her heartbeat. Sango was dead.

Miroku's eyes welled with pain and sorrow as he became aware of his own failing life. He turned slightly, painfully, to face Kohaku, their attacker. He shared with him a pained and yet patient smile.

"I...know you are in there...and...you must know...Sango...will never be mad...for what you have been made...to do..." He was met with an evil smirk.

"You will all die...one by one...I will kill you all," it was said in a voice unlike Kohaku's. Miroku stared into those crimson orbs from where he was quickly expelling his fluid life. The Naraku in Kohaku's eyes seemed to dance as Miroku drew his last breath.

"...We shall see..." and with that, Miroku allowed himself to fall to the cold hard floor, his fingers still entwined in Sango's, and was dead.

Inuyasha's eyes blurred fiercely as he witnessed the death of two of his best friends. Kohaku hadn't aimed for him at all...Naraku had made Kohaku throw his weapon at Miroku and at his own sister. Right when Miroku had been distracted in calming his one and only as she died too...

Inuyasha could see Kagome and Kachie in tears as well. Koga, like him, was fighting not to let the pained emotion show.

Kohaku lunged at Inuyasha once more and Inuyasha parried with ease. Kohaku jumped back near his friends and Inuyasha, in a small fit of panic, lunged at him. He could the most peculiar look on Kagome's face as he and Koga went after Kohaku as he bounded in another direction. She wore a look of amazement, realization, and shock.

Kagome saw it faintly. She had seen it when Kohaku had landed frighteningly close to her, Kachie, and Koga. And as Inuyasha and Koga drove the boy away, she was sure of it.

She had seen a Shikon shard in his back. She was positive.

"Kachie..." she whispered, still in awe and shock. Worried, Kachie looked at her.

"What? Are you alright?"

"...There was a shard of the Shikon no Tama in Kohaku's back...I could see it..."

Kachie's eyes widened, "How is that possible? Naraku has the whole jewel..."

Kagome shook her head; "He doesn't realize that there is a shard missing...it is in his possession, that's how he's always controlled Kohaku, with that shard in his back. But because it was in his power, he didn't know that it was missing from the jewel...it didn't click in his head...even though he is still using it as we speak..."

"It must be from the inside of the jewel...I didn't see any nicks in it..." Kachie mused. Kagome nodded.

"As long as Naraku doesn't figure this out...we might have a chance..."

Kagura and Kanna retained enraged expressions as they witnessed everything happen. The slayer and the monk were dead now as well...Damn Naraku!

Kagura stood up shakily and glared at the hanyou battling with the demon lord.

How dare he cause such pain...

She grasped her fan and flung it open as a huge gust of wind filled the room. She could make the dead dance...She **would** make the dead dance...Not Hekele, Sango, or Miroku...no, that would betray the gratefulness she felt for their sacrifices...but she would make the rest of Naraku's palace dance...after all, the halls were lined with dead nobles and servants who were exposed to Naraku's miasma...Yes...they would do nicely.

With her fan she called them forth and they burst through the doors at her will. She sent them forth at Naraku to aid the demon lord. Suddenly, from nowhere, came a clawed arm at her. Kagura dodged and looked at her attacker. It was one of Naraku's incarnations. She looked past him and saw seven more.

This wasn't going to be easy...Naraku had come even more prepared than even _they_ had known...It was good that Kanna was there to back her up...

Sesshoumaru blocked, parried, attacked, and repeated as he and Naraku dueled. Fury washed over him in waves. Naraku had killed Hekele. He had stabbed her through her throat and now she was dead. **HIS** Hekele. Rin would never forgive him.

He would not forgive himself.

Sesshoumaru's rage wasn't enough to blind him, but it was enough to keep him from noticing as Sango and Miroku each fell to the clutches of mortality. He failed to notice as Kagura and Kanna tried to come to his aid, only to be occupied with more of Naraku's incarnations. No, Sesshoumaru's rage was beyond that.

He had never told Hekele how he felt about her. She knew, of course, and he knew this. But still, he had never_said_ a word to her about it. Part of him knew that he was still discovering the depths of this thing called love. He dodged one of Naraku's blows as he pondered this.

Just how much of this feeling did he understand?

As he blocked another of Naraku's attacks and launched one of his own, Sesshoumaru ran over the exchanges he had shared with Hekele. Most of them had to do with either intense subjects, or some rather comical ones.

Was that love? Being able to speak to one another?

As Naraku dodged his attack, Sesshoumaru had another thought.

He recalled when the girls had broken the monk's nose and she had had to set and bandage it. The monk had given into his usual habits and had not only groped her but he had also been staring rather happily somewhere he shouldn't have. Sesshoumaru recalled the rage he had felt and how he had promptly removed her from the monk's reach, even before realizing just how much she meant to him.

Was that it? Was love looking out for one another?

Sesshoumaru parried Naraku's appendage as he pondered the topic more, using his confusion to fuel his rage.

He remembered easily what had taken place mere hours ago, in Naraku's dimension. Hekele had trusted him with her life, knowing that he had _wanted_ to save her. Fear had eventually taken its toll, but even when afraid that he would not decide quickly enough, Hekele had called out to _him_, and he was more than happy to show her that he would not abandon her and let her die. Sesshoumaru knew that were the roles reversed, he could trust Hekele to do the same as he had.

Was that what love was? To trust another with your own life and heart and know that they would be safe in that person's hands?

Sesshoumaru blocked once more and thrust his sword into Naraku's shoulder, earning a slightly satisfying groan of agony. Pity it was his right shoulder. Naraku backed out of the blade before Sesshoumaru could twist it and healed his wound with the darkened jewel. Sesshoumaru scowled once more.

It really didn't matter now though, what love meant to Sesshoumaru, because he had failed. He had failed with mere feet to go to protect the one he had unwillingly fallen for. That stubborn, blonde and red haired, blue eyed, arrogant, tragic, and yet loving girl who had always defied him, most of the time with a smirk or genuine smile worn about her lips.

The guilt was killing him inside.

**F**_l_**a**_s_**h**_b_**a**_c_**k**

**_"Rin...we will return soon, this I promise..." Sesshoumaru said softly to her as he gently hugged her. Rin took a little comfort from this and Hekele gave her a hug as well._**

**_"But don't stay up waiting for us...we might be a little late..." she added, only half joking._**

**_"Come back safe or Rin won't forgive Sesshoumaru-sama or Hekele-chan!!! Sesshoumaru-sama and Hekele-chan promised!!!" she called after them as she disappeared safely into the distance._**

**E**_n_**d** _F_**l**_a_**s**_h_**b**_a_**c**_k_

He knew that Rin had meant what she had said, even if she didn't. He knew that she would forever hold a hole in her heart where her adoptive mother had resided. He would as well.

"So, what are we going to do with this new development?" Kachie asked Kagome quietly, referring to the shard remaining in Kohaku's back. Kagome sighed.

"...We need to get Kohaku over here somehow...without Naraku knowing what we're gonna do..." she said, after thinking for a moment.

"Well, what are we going to do???" Kachie pressed, totally confused.

"I'm going to try to purify the shard in his back. If I focus my power enough...I should be able to do it even though it's still inside him..." she explained.

"Why not use one of your arrows?" Kachie asked. Kagome shook her head.

"I don't know if I can focus enough of my miko energy into one arrow...and since I'll only have one clear opportunity at best..."

"Ok...but do you really think this will work?" Kachie asked.

"I am almost positive...it's how Naraku has been ordering him around and hiding his memories for the past year or so...without it, he would just be Kohaku...but, even if it doesn't work...it will still give us a little ground to stand on."

"The shard."

"Precisely." There was a pause, which was broken by Kachie.

"So how do we get him over here without making it seem to obvious?"

Sesshoumaru continued his battle with Naraku viciously, but he was beginning to slow down. The dark Shikon no Tama was fueling the hated hanyou's stamina more than Sesshoumaru could handle. His muscles were starting to ache and even his rage wasn't enough to keep him oblivious to all else any longer.

Sesshoumaru could see Kanna and Kagura having a battle of their own with some more of Naraku's incarnations. Kagura was using her ability to control the dead, however, the incarnations were much too powerful to be damaged with dead humans. He could see that three of them had fallen, however. The two newly freed shades of the hanyou Naraku had five more to slay.

Sesshoumaru, on a leap towards his adversary, had also seen the fallen monk and slayer.

Miroku and Sango as well?!? Even Sesshoumaru could not hide his grief at the tragic way in which they appeared to have died. But, to him, at least they had died together.

He battled with what he hoped was new energy but was actually merely more fuel for his anger. Anger, he knew, couldn't win this war. This war that he had been unwittingly sucked into of good and evil. Sesshoumaru, ironically, fighting on the side of good.

He heard the sound of fast moving wind and dodged out of the way, knowing very well that it hadn't come from the wind witch's fan. He saw the scythe of Sango's brother Kohaku fly past him and he turned to see where he was exactly, wanting to make sure that he wasn't close enough to pose much more of a threat.

Then Sesshoumaru felt a pain unlike he had ever felt before as he realized his mistake a moment to late.

Naraku had thrust his tentacle into Sesshoumaru's heart at the very moment he turned his back. He twisted the appendage with a sadistic grin and his eyes danced with amusement when the demon lord coughed up blood. As Sesshoumaru fell to the ground Naraku removed the appendage from its lodge and examined the blood that coated it with interest.

"Well, well, well...I see that curse I put on your sword not only inhibits its ability to bring back the dead, as you must have known, but it also prevents the Tenseiga from protecting you as it always has from bodily harm. How interesting...and here I thought I would have to separate you from it to kill you..." he said in a bemused tone.

Sesshoumaru was aware of everyone's frightened eyes on his dying form. He could smell their uncertainty and fear, though as the milliseconds passed by it was becoming increasingly difficult...

He looked to his right as best he could and saw, about thirty feet from him, Hekele's body. His blood red eyes softened slightly as he remembered the promise the two had made to Rin once again...

"Come back safe or Rin won't forgive Sesshoumaru-sama or Hekele-chan!!! Sesshoumaru-sama and Hekele-chan promised!!!"

He could still see her retreating form on the fire-cat's back as she and Jakken had gone towards the village. He could still see the firm look upon her young face as she had made that declaration. He drew his last breath.

I am sorry Rin...but this is one promise that we couldn't keep... It was his last conscious thought as he was swallowed into the darkness of death.

Kagome looked on in shock as Sesshoumaru's eyes closed for the last time. She turned and saw that once more, the battle was frozen in shock. She could see pain written all over Inuyasha's face as the scene registered in his mind.

Just when they had stopped fighting and hating each other... she thought as the pain set into her own heart more. Four. Four of her dearest friends had been killed so far. She looked at the semi-frozen form of Kohaku and scowled. It was time to end this pain. She would never have an opening this clear again...she was sure of it.

"Now Kachie!" she hissed as she began to sprint towards Kohaku's turned back. Kachie complied and ran after her, knowing her roll in their 'almost-sneak-attack.'

Inuyasha was surprised to see Kagome and Kachie run past him and Koga in the momentary stupor of anguish they were currently sharing. He saw their target and growled to himself when it turned and saw them. He and Koga went to their aid in the blink of an eye, just as Kachie attacked Kohaku with her new battle-axe.

Kohaku parried and, seeing Inuyasha coming after Kagome, ignored her and turned to attack Kachie. Too bad that it was what the two girls had wanted.

Inuyasha caught Kagome's arm and pulled her back, "What are you doing?!? You two could get killed!!!" he yelled as Koga veered off to attack Naraku.

"I have a plan, let GO! SIT!" out of reflex, Inuyasha, despite the removal of his rosary, plummeted to the ground. As he grumbled curses for his damn reflexive fall, Kagome took the opportunity to run after Kohaku. She took a deep breath, thrust her hand out in front of her, and concentrated her miko power into it as she neared him.

Please...let this work... she pleaded to the silent gods above as she made contact with the spot that held the shard.

A scream of pain was heard as the soft pink light began to engulf the boy slowly. But it wasn't Kohaku's scream.

Naraku doubled over in pain as the miko Kagome began to purify the shard in the slayer's back. It was then that Naraku realized his mistake. He had never removed the shard from the boy's back. The jewel wasn't whole after all...

What is this pain?!?! he cried to himself mentally. Just then he looked at the shards around his neck. They were beginning to turn a pinkish color.

The connection! They are still connected when this close to one another! he thought as he recalled the little quirk that he had discovered and used against the group when they had arrived to his palace. It was then that Naraku realized what was happening to him because of this connection.

He was being purified...slowly...

They saw Naraku's look of horror as the jewel around his neck began to slowly become pure. Koga grinned and attacked, deciding to use this new development to his advantage. Naraku wasn't done for yet, however, and was still able to evade with ease despite the pain he was going through.

Inuyasha slowly realized the Naraku was being purified by the same connection that had drawn the shards to him and decided to assist Koga in his battle, hoping against hope that Kagome could keep up this plan of her long enough...

Kachie held Kohaku still as he began to shake violently with all the power that was flowing through him. She saw as his eyes flickered between brown and red. Kagome's plan was working...it was working better than either could have hoped.

She could feel Kagome's power flowing through the air in calming waves and was very surprised at its strength. Never before had she been able to sense anyone's power...but this was hitting her as much as it was everyone else.

Kagome intensified the power flowing through her hand into Kohaku when she realized what was happening to Naraku. Maybe...maybe she could finish him off...but she was beginning to feel the effects of using so much power she do it? She could feel something pushing against her power, however, making her new idea harder to accomplish. She could feel Naraku's power fighting for control of Sango's brother as Naraku himself battled with Inuyasha and Koga. She could feel where, inside Kohaku, there seemed to be a battle of her own against Naraku.

The battle was intense.

Naraku wasn't as graceful or as agile as he had been moments before. Inuyasha and Koga used this advantage as best as they could. Naraku seemed distracted somehow, and it wasn't just the pain either.

Suddenly, he doubled over and screamed once more. Kagome must have done something...she was still with Kachie at Kohaku's side and purifying the shard.

_Why aren't they done already?_ Inuyasha growled to himself. It had never taken Kagome less than the blink of an eye to purify a shard, or even a group of shards for that matter.

It was then that he saw Kohaku's body begin to glow with the energy of the two beings battling for control of him.

_So that's why Naraku seems distracted...he's trying to keep Kagome from purifying him by keeping control of the shard in Kohaku..._ he mused as he took another swing at the evil hanyou. Naraku dodged and launched an attack of his own, only to have his appendage sliced off by Kagura's Dance of the Dragon attack.

Kagura herself stood near her former master, panting and ragged looking. Kanna was next to her, looking hurt but standing firm.

The incarnations they had been battling were all dead.

"Naraku...you must do better than that..." she panted angrily. Somehow, she was beginning to feel extraordinarily weak...and it wasn't because of the battle she and Kanna had just finished either...

Naraku's face contorted into a pained, yet evil grin. _They are still made from my flesh...if something were to happen to me...they would die as well...their bodies...being mere portions of my own, cannot withstand as much as mine...they would die first..._

"What are you smiling about?!?!" Inuyasha yelled. Naraku merely continued to grin until another wave of pain hit him.

"Kagome!!! Hang in there...you're winning!!!" Kachie encouraged as she continued to hold Kohaku's shaking body. She watched as the levels of the black and pinkish light went up and down, colliding with one another in different places. She knew what those lights represented. The represented the good and evil energy fighting within Kohaku. She could feel them both intensifying drastically. She heard Naraku yell in pain and gave a triumphant look towards him, that is, until she saw Kanna and Kagura double over too. She heard their screams of pain as well, and realized partially what was going on.

_Why are they being affected by the purification of the jewel? Is it because he created them???_ she thought to herself with worry. If Kanna and Kagura died...then not only would they have never truly tasted freedom, but then Hekele's death would be in vain as well...as would Sango and Miroku's death...and even Sesshoumaru's...all of them had died to keep everyone else safe.

_Please...let this turn out ok..._she thought as the power levels increased once again. This time, they were so profound that she was burned slightly from the clash and had to let go...

Kagome breathed heavily as the amount of energy she was using began to take its toll. It was not that she was running out of energy, it was that so much of it was flowing through her body that it was tiring her. She forced herself to keep going, however, because she had to.

She closed her eyes in concentration and to keep the blinding light that was emitting from Kohaku's body out of them as well. She dug deep within herself and pulled forth all of the energy she could. She really didn't care what happened to her at this point...as long as they won and not Naraku.

Naraku doubled over in another wave of pain, as did Kanna and Kagura. Kanna didn't get back up.

Naraku stood and dodged one of Koga's kicks to the face. He knew what he had to do to survive. He put forth all of the speed and energy he could and ran at Kagome. He would kill her.

"KAGOME!!!" Inuyasha called warning to her as he attempted to get to her before Naraku, Koga right behind him.

Kagome saw Naraku form a barbed appendage, and knew it was meant for her. She put forth another burst of energy into Kohaku in a wild attempt to stay alive and saw as she overtook the evil hanyou's power. Kohaku glowed pink just as Naraku reached her and thrust his appendage at her.

It never hit.

Kachie saw what was about to happen and ran in front of her friend. _Now it's my turn to make a difference in this...this war that never should have been. Good luck Kags...everyone...I'm sorry Koga..._

It was then that she felt the pain. She saw the barbed appendage through her in her own blood.

Naraku, with great difficulty, yanked the appendage from Kachie's abdomen, causing her to collapse to the ground. Kagome put forth one last burst of energy into Kohaku's shard and Naraku, who had been half lying on the ground in pain, went flying towards the other side of the room.

Kachie looked up towards her friends. She gave Kagome, whom she was facing, the best smile she could manage and stuttered out her last words with difficulty.

"Sorry Kags...but there wasn't...another way...tell Koga...not to be mad at me...ok?" she requested. Kagome could only nod.

"Of course Kachie...Thank you..." she cried, pain and sorrow laced in every syllable.

"KACHIE!" Koga yelled as he ran to her side, but it was too late. She was already dead. Koga let his tears fall freely and held her to him in grief.

Inuyasha was already at Kagome's side as she fell to the ground out of fatigue. Inuyasha grasped her and hugged her fiercely. He sniffed her up and down for any injuries, as if to make sure that she wouldn't too fall and never wake up. Satisfied that she was only tired, he calmed a bit.

Kohaku slowly opened his eyes; he felt so odd. The last thing he could clearly remember was going on his first mission as a slayer with his family...there were also jumbled thoughts in his mind, memories even, of being controlled...gods how his head ached!

"S-sango? Where's Sango?" he asked to no one in particular. A girl with raven hair and a strange, short, white, and green kimono looked over at him slowly and smiled slightly. Behind her was a silver haired hanyou with dog-ears a-top his head.

"My name is Kagome, Kohaku...how are you?" she asked. Kohaku noticed how tired she sounded.

"I...think I'm ok...why wouldn't I be? Where are my father and Sango?" he asked again. The Kagome girl looked at him somewhat sadly.

"Kohaku...I will tell you later...right now...you should leave...head east until we come and find you...if you come upon a village before we find you...go to the priestess's hut and stay there. Do you understand?" she asked. Kohaku nodded.

"Now turn around...there is something in your back..." she said slowly. Kohaku complied.

"Now, this might hurt..." she said. Kohaku nodded and bit down a gasp of pain as he felt the girl pull something out of him. It was a small, pink jewel...

"Now go...quick..." the hanyou growled, Kohaku hesitated, but grabbed his weapon and took his leave in the direction that the hanyou was pointing in.

It was then that Kohaku became aware of his surroundings. He was in what looked like a throne room. There were corpses and blood everywhere. He could not see any of the people directly, but he had a feeling that he should give thanks to them. He would ask what had happened later, right now he decided to listen to the hanyou and the girl, Kagome, and exit with haste. It seemed odd to trust these strangers...but Kohaku had this gut feeling that he could trust them, and he never went against his gut...

Naraku watched through half-lidded eyes as his last servant was freed from his power and released into the world. Kohaku had willingly listened to their instructions and left in the direction Inuyasha had instructed. Now, with the boy gone, the remaining three fighters turned their tired and hateful gazes at him. He could see the shock in their expressions as they gazed upon his, 'body,' or rather, what normally made it up.

Naraku was in pieces, literally. The demons that formed his body were all cast out and mostly dead. Only Naraku's head, suspended in the mess of limbs and body parts, remained completely intact. That is what needed to be done away with now...his head...Naraku's entire body was dispersed, but as long as he could still be permitted to exist, the world would not be safe. Naraku knew this with pleasure; his enemies did not. He knew they knew what they had to do, and he also knew that they would not show mercy...

"Why do you seem so surprised that I am alive? I am a hanyou after all..." he taunted slightly. Too bad they hadn't the patience to answer him nicely...

Inuyasha took one look at Naraku's pathetic state across the room and charged at him, Tetsusaiga drawn and ready. He saw the place where the demonic energies collided and prepared to use his Kaze no Kizu.

_This is for all of the pain you've cause me. For all of the pain you've cause Kagome and Koga even...for killing Sesshoumaru, Sango, Miroku, Hekele, and Kachie...and for controlling and manipulating Kanna, Kagura, and Kohaku...this is for **EVERYONE!!!**_ he thought angrily. He swung his blade and the Kaze no Kizu appeared, in all it's glory, and sliced Naraku to bits.

Kagome, with Koga's help, stood up and walked towards what was left of Naraku. It was over. They had won.

But as Kagome hobbled past her fallen friends, and enemies even, she couldn't help but wonder if it had been worth it, to live while they had died.

When Kagome and Koga met up with Inuyasha, Koga dutifully allowed Inuyasha to take her without even the trace of annoyance. Inuyasha took Kagome the rest of the way to Naraku's remains. They would make the jewel whole now...truly whole.

Inuyasha saw Kagome's downcast eyes and knew what she had to be thinking. Inuyasha looked at the shard in her hand and made up his mind once and for all what he would do with the jewel if he had his way.

When they came upon the remains it wasn't hard to find the mostly pure jewel. Kagome kneeled down with Inuyasha's help and lifted the jewel up to her face with a slight scowl at all of the pain and suffering that it and its power had caused.

Kagome sighed and put the shard up to the rest of the jewel and pressed it. To her surprise, it actually glowed and went inside the jewel. In another burst of light, (which surprised all three of the survivors,) the jewel turned from pink to a light, soft blue. It was the same color as the light from the well when Kagome and Inuyasha traveled between their times.

"Kagome?" Inuyasha said, in awe as the jewel began to glow once more, still that light shade of blue.

"I...think it's because the jewel has never truly been pure...there was always that war between good and evil inside of it...and now it's over...inside and out..." she said, trying to explain the phenomenon. Inuyasha nodded and was mildly surprised when Kagome placed the whole jewel in his hand and closed his fingers around it.

"Inuyasha...I promised to give you this when we were finished collecting the shards...go on and make your wish..." she said, completely surprising him. Inuyasha looked at the jewel for less than a second before in taking a deep breath.

"I wish..." was all he could get out.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, an arrow flew towards Inuyasha and lodged itself in his left shoulder, inches above his heart. Inuyasha yelled in pain.

Kagome, Inuyasha, and Koga, (who had since joined the two to witness the wish-making,) looked up at Inuyasha's attacker as Inuyasha himself ripped out the arrow. All of their jaws dropped in shock. Before them stood, out of a cloud of black, a woman with long black hair, black 'angel' wings, dark soulless brown eyes, and a very pale complexion. She had her bow and a quiver of arrows at ready, aiming another arrow directly at Inuyasha.

"Kikyo..." Inuyasha managed to get out in shock. Kagome and Koga shared the emotion.

"Inuyasha..." she spat, "it's time to end this..." She drew back the arrow, and let it go.

Me- I HAVE DONE IT!!!!!!! I finished the chappie!!!

Kachie- She was having a really hard time with this chappie and had to keep

calling me for advice and help...I was having a hard time too, can you

imagine my face when she asked me how she should kill me?!?!

Me- Also, I kept re-writing parts and adding and taking out parts...and I think

that I should have added more of Kagura and Kanna's battle, but I couldn't

figure out where to write it in at...

Lawyers- Rumiko Takahashi must be dying from shock at what you have done to

her characters...so we're gonna sue you! MUAHAHAHAHA!!!

Sesshoumaru- Excuse me...but did Hekele not warn you that lots of bad things

were going to happen? Recall also that she said that there would

be a happy ending...

Me- Thank you Sesshoumaru. (gives Sesshoumaru a huge hug and a kiss on the

cheek.) See? I killed him and yet HE understands my mind!!!!!

Lawyers- (grumble, grumble) Whatever...

Naraku- YOU KILLED ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ME- Oh, shut up...

Kagome- Don't worry...things will get better really quick in her story...The next

chapter is the last chapter...and the chapter after that is the epilogue...

Kachie- Yep...and the epilogue is going to have flowers, dancing, and

happiness...whoever can guess what is gonna happen in the epilogue

will get the next chappie dedicated to them...no prize, (big computer

troubles...scanners are not working...--...) but a dedication...well

good luck...

Me- R&R...or no chappie...


	17. Final EnemyFinal TestOnly Wish

**Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love**

All right...I got a couple of angry people on my back...just to clarify the previously stated...there will be a HAPPY ending. Ok? Good!

Now...this is going to start out bleak...of course...but things always get worse before they get better.

Ok, I would also like to apologize for my lack of updates. I had a stumper half way through this chapter, plus I was working on the sophomore homecoming float, (hey, the countless hours paid off, we 10th graders won the contest...) was walking in our parade, was out dancing all night at the homecoming dance, and watched helplessly as my team lost our football game 42-7 that night.

Also, not that any of this should prevent me from writing, but my father has been a huge stiff about me writing this story. He thinks it's a waste of time and that I can't write a sequel. However, though it will take me much longer to do, I plan on adding ANOTHER chapter to THIS story between this one and the epilogue, (thank me later,) AND I plan on writing a sequel, but I may only be able to write bits and pieces at a time, do to my restrictions at home, but know this, I NEVER abandon something that I start. That includes this story. So please forgive me, it isn't entirely my fault, but I am partially to blame for the writer's block. I know what I want to do, but not how to deliver...that's where your free extra chapter comes in...you are welcome btw...

FYI- Everyone's favorite number one Miko is gonna kick some major ass in this chappie...plus...the wish of the millennium will be made in as well ...and you guys were all wrong in guessing what it was, (for those of you who tried...)

Ok then...onto the chappie!!!

Disclaimer: I own nothing involving Inuyasha...or any of the songs that I may or may not use in this chappie for that matter...

**Final Enemy...Final Test...Only Wish...**

Inuyasha, Kagome, and Koga stared at the woman in front of them with shock. Not only was Kikyo alive, but also she was emitting a demonic aura...and had the wings of a fallen angel.

"How?" Inuyasha asked, his voice turning cold. Kikyo smirked.

"When have I ever depended on another? Do you actually think that I _needed_ Naraku?" she asked wickedly. Inuyasha's eyes narrowed as he stepped in front of Kagome and secretly placed the Shikon no Tama in her hand for safekeeping. Kagome touched his hand a second longer in support as she took the jewel. The gesture was gratefully received.

"...Can I ask you one thing Kikyo? Why? What did we do to deserve this?" he asked, trying to stall for time. He was trying to think of a way to get Kagome away to safety. Koga could take her, but would he...with an enemy still alive?

"Inuyasha...you promised to go to Hell with me did you not? I wish to collect on your vow...as well as to collect the remnants of my soul..." Kikyo said, taking a step towards the group. Inuyasha growled ferociously in warning.

"I will not go to Hell with you, Kikyo. You've hurt us and betrayed us; why should I keep my vow when you have forsaken all that a miko stands for? Why go to Hell with you when I can live among people who actually care about more than themselves?" he retorted wisely, seeing his previous choice through gallantly. Kikyo glared at Inuyasha as though he were a disease.

"Two wrongs..._don't_ make a right," she said as she arched her bow and notched and arrow. Inuyasha merely stared at her as she did so.

"But three lefts do..." With that Kikyo fired another arrow, narrowly missing Inuyasha and Kagome as they dodged, (well, Inuyasha dodged, and he dragged poor Kagome with him.)

"Koga! Get Kagome out of here!" he yelled as he set Kagome on the ground and lunged towards Kikyo. Koga growled in frustration, having been about to say the same thing only vise versa. This was not his fight, however, so Koga took the order through gritted teeth.

Koga ran to Kagome and wrapped a firm arm around her as he began to bolt for the doorway leading out of Naraku's palace.

"Koga?!? What are you doing?! We have to help him!" Kagome screeched as Koga ran through the door and towards the exit.

"Don't worry...as soon as I am sure that you are safe I'll go back and help the mutt...he never said that I had to stay with you...though that would be best..." Koga added as an after thought as he turned into another hallway.

Kagome looked up at him, a bit taken aback, "...Since when have you ever listened to anything Inuyasha says? Or gone against your instincts for that matter?"

Koga looked down at her as he burst through a window and landed on the soft dirt outside, "...It's not my fight. That bitch and him have a score to settle...it's not my place to intrude on their battle, but," he added as he saw Kagome's questioning expression, "I also think he's an idiot for wanting to battle her alone...and so I'll keep and eye on him for you." Koga set Kagome down and led her to a storage shed, which was for the most part empty.

"Stay here until we come looking for you...keep an arrow notched at all times...just in case. Got it?"

Kagome only nodded sadly as she gave Koga a small hug, "Be careful, Kachie wouldn't want you to die...ok? I don't know what Inuyasha will wish for...but if it isn't for everyone to come back to life...then I want you to stay alive, all right? You're my friend."

Koga looked at her fondly and nodded, "Hey, you're my friend too...and even Inuyasha isn't so heartless as to leave everyone dead...I'll see Kachie again...and all of our friends. Don't worry about us." With that, Koga ran back towards Inuyasha and Kikyo's battle. He hoped that he'd make it back in time to keep his promise to Kagome and help Inuyasha. Another thought also crossed his mind as he ran through the palace once more:

_I **will** see Kachie again...nothing will stop me from that...in life...**or** death..._

Inuyasha lunged at Kikyo with his sword but she dodged it expertly. She spread her black wings and lifted herself from the ground with a kind of morbid grace that could make most men weep with its hidden tragedy. Inuyasha was not fazed. He continued his onslaught only to have Kikyo continue to maneuver about in a taunting manner. Every once in a while she would fire an arrow or so to keep him on his toes, but for the most part she was teasing him.

"Damn it Kikyo...stay still so I can get this over with!" Inuyasha yelled angrily, knowing full well that the last thing she would think of doing would be to **not** move.

As if to confirm this, Kikyo snorted indignantly and summoned a dark orb of purely evil energy. She showed her prize to Inuyasha, who seemed, once again, in a slight state of shock at his former love's newly revealed abilities.

"This powerful orb is made of hate, Inuyasha. Once set into motion, this orb will continue to pursue the one that its master despises the most at the moment that it is released. Its power is determined by the deepness of the hate and the darkness of the soul of its master. No light, no matter how powerful, can penetrate the darkness of the hate that drives **_my_** orb. Not even Kagome's own miko powers, Inuyasha, which are partially derived from my own, can stop it. Once it finds the one which I hate the most, it will destroy him/her painfully," she explained, lovingly stroking the dark orb.

The dark light reflected sadly in her eyes, for hidden sadness often drives the hate within. Kikyo's sadness, however, was so small that even the depths of her soul had trouble discovering its previous existence. She was sad that she couldn't have lived out her life, sad that her companion had had to be pinned to a tree for fifty years, and sad that the dark demonic powers that had been transferred to her from the underworld when she had resurrected had so easily taken over her only chance at life by feeding the inner hate that had formed all those years ago when she thought that she had been betrayed.

But, like the bandit Onigumo, who had been the base for the creation Naraku, these things had faded into memories for Kikyo. She remembered being sad about death, but was no more; she remembered mourning in hell for Inuyasha's undeserving punishment, but felt the pain no longer; Kikyo even could recall the guilt she had first felt as she was thrust back into the world of the living in a fake body that was charged with demonic powers, which even she could not detect until she wished to do so; once again, however, this emotion was buried within her as the greed and hate was allowed to build into the callused form that it was now. Kikyo no longer felt these things, however, the memory of having felt them continued to burrow it into her. This only added to her fueled hate in the end.

"Kikyo," Inuyasha warned dangerously, "I will kill you, but if you set that thing after Kagome as you most likely will, you'll wish I had been more merciful in how I did it..." Kikyo merely raised a brow and let go of the orb in her hands defiantly. It remained in place for a moment before speeding violently towards where Koga had taken Kagome.

"You bitch..." Inuyasha muttered lowly as he took off at a sprint after the orb. Kikyo did not move. Inuyasha wondered why for a few seconds as he passed the orb...until he saw Koga running in his direction. Both of them were surprised.

"Are you running away mutt? I thought I tagged you better than that!" Koga growled. Inuyasha glared.

"Kikyo sent something after Kagome...**why are you not with her?!?!?!**" he yelled. Koga paled as he noticed the orb wiz past the two.

"Tag team!" he shouted as he began to run towards where Kikyo was. Inuyasha nodded and sped after the orb once more, praying beyond hope that he got to Kagome first.

Kagome paced the shed sadly. _She_ wanted to be helping Inuyasha and Koga...but _they_ wanted her to stay put, obviously. Kagome did not like that.

_At least Koga went back to help..._ she thought dejectedly as she continued her quiet pacing. Perhaps they would come for her sooner, so that she could help. It was odd, but for some reason, Kagome felt so...powerful at the moment. She had never felt like that before, not that much anyway.

She placed the now pure Shikon no Tama about her neck and stared at its majestic brilliance. Was it the jewel, she wondered, that seemed to be giving her the power? Was the fact that **she** purified it enough to give her that type of bond with it?

Kagome wondered also about the Goddess Midoriko, the first miko and creator of the jewel. What must she be thinking now? Where was she? Up in heaven as the legend goes...or did a piece of her still remain in the jewel? Kagome wasn't sure, but she closed both of her hands about the jewel and shut her eyes as she said a silent prayer.

_Please...Midoriko...wherever you are...help us win this...even though we now have the jewel and it is pure...we need it to bring back our friends...please give us the strength to beat Kikyo without it...please be with us when we need it..._ Unbeknown to Kagome, the Shikon no Tama glowed lightly for a second, as if to reassure her.

Kagome's eyes shot open as she heard fast footsteps heading her way. She knew Koga wasn't in the state to run that fast...though he was doing well at hiding it.

_Inu-_

"KAGOME!!! Get out of there now!!!" came Inuyasha's urgent cry. Kagome wasted no time in opening the door and rushing outside towards him.

She yelped when her head was nearly taken off by a ball of dark energy. It hit the ground behind her and sent her flying.

Inuyasha raced forward and caught her sloppily, causing both of them to fall over.

"What the hell was that?!?" Kagome asked as she stood up and dusted herself off. Inuyasha did the same.

"That," he said as he breathed heavily, "was a hello from Kikyo." Kagome nodded knowingly and thanked him for his rescue.

Just then, a bright, darkly shaded light caught their attention. Both of them stared in shock as the dark ball of hateful energy reshaped and readied itself for another attack.

Koga lunged at Kikyo the instant he saw her. He hated how she seemed to smile at him as he did so. Kikyo dodged him with ease as she lifted herself from the ground once more. It was almost as if Kikyo had always had her beautiful, yet dark wings. She had complete control of their movements, more so, it seemed, than a bird that has flown for years.

Koga continued his onslaught without mercy, however. He fought bravely, to be sure. Just because Kikyo was a woman did not mean that she did not deserve to meet the same fate as Naraku had.

Kikyo continued to dodge Koga, giving him little taunts as she did so. To her, he was the appetizer, Inuyasha was the main course, and Kagome was the icing on the cake. She must finish this part of her 'meal' before moving onto the next, but that did not mean that she would not have fun with it first. Setting herself back to the ground playfully, she smirked. This game of 'cat and mouse' was very entertaining to her.

"Kikyo?! Why not fight me head on?! Are you **_that_** afraid of me?!" Koga jested as she dodged once more.

Kikyo pouted and notched an arrow as she continued to maneuver around the wolf prince, "Of course not Koga...I just didn't feel like dirtying my hands with your blood quite yet."

Koga growled and lunged at her once more, enraged by her passive tone. He wanted nothing more to rip her throat right out of her neck, and take the remnants of Kagome's soul from her undeserving 'body' as well.

Kikyo stood still and unafraid as he came at her, and fired the arrow, grazing his shoulder. She smiled a sadistic smile as he clutched his shoulder in pain. When his eyes turned a blood red, as Sesshoumaru's had when he was enraged, Kikyo only notched another arrow calmly. She would not waste her hidden power on this unworthy creature; she would save it to baffle her other two victims. Inuyasha, Kagome, and Koga saw only the tip of the iceberg that was her ability. She would keep it as such for a while longer.

Koga's eyes remained a crimson red as he stood up tall and glared at Kikyo. He was pissed. He ran at Kikyo with speed that only a high adrenaline level could allow, and swiped at her furiously with his claws.

Kikyo, whom was surprised, actually had trouble dodging his latest assault. He was swinging at her so swiftly that she could not find an opening to spread her wings and take flight.

Then he got her.

Koga, with his razor sharp claws, was able to grasp onto Kikyo's left wing and rip out a small chunk of flesh and black feathers. Kikyo actually screamed in pain.

Koga went for the other wing, hoping to keep Kikyo grounded and give himself an advantage. It didn't work. Kikyo thrust both of her wings forward at Koga, sending him flying backwards and into the nearby wall. Kikyo's eyes glowed red as well and in her hand formed a blood-red ball. Kikyo took a step towards the stumbling Koga before speaking.

"You dare to harm me, wolf prince? You dare to take a holy figure and dirty it with its own blood?" she asked passively, awaiting the reply that she knew would come.

"You, who would aid a being such as Naraku, could **never** be holy. You, who would _use_ a being such as Naraku to further your own revenge, could **never** be holy. You, who could lie to a person who cares so deeply for you and try to kill them, could **never** be holy. To kill you is no sin!" Koga boldly contradicted as he forced his body to stand tall once more.

Kikyo glared hatred at Koga and the ball in her hand grew immensely. It crackled as small bolts of lightning burst from it around Kikyo. Her hair waved about her madly as her red eyes sparked with anger.

"You forget, wolf prince, I am already dead," she said passively. With that stated, Kikyo unleashed her power.

Koga's eyes grew wide as he saw what was coming at him. He knew that he would die. As the pain of the attack began to engulf him, he said a silent prayer for his two remaining friends.

_Good luck guys...if anyone can beat her...you can..._

Kagome and Inuyasha continued to dodge the dark orb. Inuyasha attempted to use the Kaze no Kizu, but it was to no avail.

"Inuyasha, try the Bakkuryuha! It might be strong enough!" Kagome yelled to him as she notched an arrow and fired it at the orb, missing once more as the orb maneuvered away from it.

Inuyasha growled, "I would if I could, but that _thing_ stays way too close to you!!!" He grabbed Kagome by the waist and leaped back a distance.

"Inuyasha...try using the lack of distance against it...it's made of energy isn't it?" Kagome asked as Inuyasha landed. He nodded, and after setting her down he charged at the orb.

Inuyasha waited until the orb was about to pass him before he released his most deadly attack, "BAKKURYUHA!!!" When the dust cleared, the orb was no more.

Inuyasha stopped to catch his breath as he glared at where the orb had been in front of him. Instead of using its attack against it with Bakkuryuha, he used it against itself. Inuyasha walked back to Kagome and lightly embraced her.

"So...I take it that you aren't going to stay put now are you?" he asked her. Kagome smiled and shook her head.

"Come on, let's go help Koga-"

"Too late," Kikyo said, appearing behind them suddenly. Inuyasha and Kagome turned to face her and watched with aching hearts as she tossed the corpse of their friend to their feet with her powers. Kikyo smirked as Kagome muffled a gasp of emotional pain.

Now there were only Inuyasha and herself.

"Inuyasha, did you honestly think that he stood a chance against me? Do you not sense that my power is greater than that?" Kikyo said calmly, ignoring Kagome for the moment. Inuyasha's eyes widened as Kikyo allowed her powerful aura flare from her body freely. It was powerful..._very_ powerful.

Kagome could sense it as well, "How...did you get so much power?" she questioned.

"How else? When I was resurrected I was put into a false body that needed to devour souls to survive. This alone is a demonic trait. Later on I found out that with each soul I devoured I gained more and more power, and that I could conceal it as well. And as I destroyed demons in villages to protect the people, I gained their powers as well...the many combinations of power and my own previously unknown powers together created this..." she said, spinning slowly for a taunting effect.

Inuyasha growled, "That power won't be enough to defeat me..."

Kikyo only smiled, "Oh...I believe that it will..."

Kagome notched an arrow but Inuyasha held his hand in front of her; this was his fight. Inuyasha drew his Tetsusaiga and stared at Kikyo. As he took his first step Kikyo readied her defenses.

It had begun.

Kagome watched with pained eyes as Kikyo and Inuyasha began their duel to the death. It was difficult for her not to assist Inuyasha as she wished feverishly to do.

She watched as Inuyasha swung his blade at Kikyo, only to miss as the dark miko evaded with graceful ease. Kikyo would not go down easily, Koga's corpse at her feet was proof enough for that.

Kagome's gaze followed every movement made, just waiting for her chance to help, or give advice when she thought she could. Kami how she hated feeling so useless in this battle! Kikyo visibly had the upper hand, simply because Inuyasha was wearing himself out so quickly. He was getting slower as time went on, and Kikyo hadn't even broken a sweat.

Inuyasha growled as Kikyo dodged him once again; his frustration was building. He could see the injury caused by Koga still decorating her left wing, and vowed to do MUCH more damage.

The problem with that vow was, Kikyo wasn't tiring as Inuyasha was. Kikyo had so much more energy than he could have ever imagined, and he was sure that she had more power than what she was letting on as well, which frightened him more than Inuyasha would have liked to admit. As Inuyasha was just about to swing his blade once more, Kikyo spoke.

"I bore with this, Inuyasha, your time shall end!" With that, her eyes glowed red once more and lightning crackled within them. Another energy ball appeared, and this time it looked more threatening.

"Do you wish to die as the wolf price has?" she taunted. Inuyasha growled angrily. Koga, in the past week or so, had proved to be a good friend instead of an annoying foe, and Inuyasha didn't take the death of a friend lightly.

Especially when he had so few left...

Kikyo blinked, and, for a split second, her eyes shone silver. Neither Inuyasha nor Kagome noticed though. Just as Inuyasha stepped back next to Kagome to protect her, three arrows formed in mid air behind the young miko. Inuyasha nearly saw Kikyo's sadistic grin too late.

"Die..." was all that Kikyo said before the unseen arrows flew towards Kagome.

But they never hit.

Kagome gasped when she felt Inuyasha against her, and when she saw the arrows in his back she downright cried. He had heard the arrows before they had hit her and had stood in between her and them. He had saved her life once more.

Kagome allowed herself to slip to the ground, supporting Inuyasha as she fell to her knees. His claws dug into her skin with the pain but she didn't care. His breath was ragged and labored. Kikyo had hit him hard.

"I-Inuyasha...are you..." she tried to speak, but the reality that he was badly hurt nearly made it impossible. She felt Inuyasha relax his grip on her arms as he began to speak.

"Kagome...pull them...pull them out...pull the arrows out..." he managed. Kagome took one look at Kikyo and saw her standing a few yards away, watching with a bemused expression and toying with the red orb in her hand. Knowing that Kikyo would make no move to stop her, Kagome obeyed Inuyasha's request and began to yank out the three arrows. It was then that she saw that they were Miko's arrows. When she pulled out the third, Inuyasha groaned in pain.

"Ugh...please...lay me down...so that I can see you..." he requested. Kagome knew where this was going. She knew that he was dying, and that she couldn't help him.

Now two had been her shield. Two loved ones had protected her with their bodies, and it had been their final act.

"Of course Inuyasha..." was all that she could say between her tears. As she laid Inuyasha down as gently as she could she glanced at Kikyo, only to find her in the same position as before.

"Kagome...you know I love you...right?" Inuyasha asked her. Kagome tried to smile and nodded. She reached for Inuyasha's hand and squeezed it tightly.

"Yes...I know...and I love you too..." At this, Inuyasha smirked slightly and, with difficulty, brought her hand to his lips and kissed it.

"I...knew that...you little...dummy..." he joked painfully. Kagome managed a small laugh as she stroked his cheek with her other hand.

"You'll be the one to beat her...you know...I know that you're more powerful than she is..." he continued, seriously this time. Kagome's eyes lowered slightly.

"How can you say that?" she asked him. Inuyasha smiled.

"Because...you are an...amazing person, who is capable...of love...she isn't..." he said. Kagome nodded.

"...Just don't forget me...ok? And tell Shippo...he wasn't as bad as...I made him out to be..." Inuyasha requested. Kagome nodded.

"Inuyasha...of course I'll tell him...and...I couldn't forget you...even if I wanted to...you're my love..." she choked out between sobs.

Inuyasha pained at her sad expression, he had failed her again. He had failed to remain alive for her, and that hurt both figuratively and literally.

"Kagome...if you so much as think...that you can't win...if it comes down to where you are about to die...use the jewel...everyone would understand...believe me...just you stay alive and stop her..." Inuyasha said. Kagome sharply inhaled, but nodded.

"...I promise..." And with that, Inuyasha closed his eyes a final time. He was dead.

Kikyo sighed heavily when Inuyasha finally died. Now it was just her and her pathetic reincarnation. She dissolved her energy ball and permitted her eyes to no longer glow, though they still retained their red hue.

"Really, did he have to die so dramatically? And it took entirely too long as well," she said. Kagome stood suddenly and turned to face her with tears stained eyes.

"How dare you...how dare you kill him and then say that?!?" she yelled. Kikyo gave her an apathetic look.

"Oh, and I suppose that you are the one who is going to avenge him?" she said tiredly. Kagome's face hardened as she notched an arrow.

Kikyo actually laughed, "I see that you think you will, how amusing."

Kagome fired the arrow without warning and Kikyo didn't have time to dodge as it struck her shoulder, just above her heart. She gave an indignant cry as she pulled it from its lodge.

"Do not think that I shall go easy on you because you are weak!!!" she yelled as her energy began to flare about her once more in warning. It was time to end this.

_**Catch me...as I fall...**_

_**Say you're here and it's all over now...**_

Kagome dodged as Kikyo flew at her in anger and hate. She wished that her friends were there to help her...she did not believe that she could fight this enemy on her own. Despite this though...she had to try...

As Kikyo stopped to concentrate her energy into one of those energy balls that she had been favoring in the battle, Kagome readied an arrow in her bow. As she did so she was hit with a swift wind that knocked it and the bow out of her desperate hands.

**_Speaking...to the atmosphere..._**

_**No one's here, and I fall into myself...**_

As Kikyo hit Kagome with one of her weaker energy balls Kagome flew backward and hit the wall of the palace painfully. Who was she kidding? There was no hope of her beating Kikyo on her own! Inuyasha had been wrong! Now there was no one to help her...she was alone...

**_This truth...drives me...into...MADNESS!!!_**

_**I know I can stop the pain...if I will it all away...**_

Kagome held her chest painfully as she stood up to face her nemesis. Kikyo landed gracefully about ten feet in front of her mockingly.

"You have no prayer Kagome...not even Midoriko herself could save you now...and you know it too..." she said.

"I CAN beat you...and I WILL..." Kagome replied, secretly hoping that she was right.

**_Don't...turn away..._**

_**Don't give in to the pain...**_

_**Don't...try to hide...**_

_**Though they're screaming your name...**_

_**Don't...close your eyes...**_

_**God knows what lies behind them...**_

_**Don't...turn out the lights...**_

_**Never sleep...never die...**_

Kagome concentrated all of her energy into her hands, (something that the Lady Kaede had tried to teach her,) formed a bow and arrow out of it, and fired it at Kikyo as she burst forward with her powerful wings. She hit the evil woman with her newest weapon and was rewarded with a scream as she was pierced and as the arrow disappeared.

"You...see, Kagome...you can NOT beat me..."

"...And I can't let you win."

"Die as your companion did, incompetent child!" Kikyo formed the energy ball she had had before and as she allowed her hate to flow into it, she released it towards Kagome. It missed her narrowly and hit the palace behind her, causing it to burst into flames violently.

**_I'm frightened...by what I see..._**

_**But somehow I know that there's much more to come...**_

Kagome's eyes enlarged as she saw what was happening to the palace. Soon, the scent of burning flesh reached her nose. It didn't take a demon to know what was happening to the bodies of her friends. The pain of her losses began fuel.

**_Immobilized...by my fear..._**

_**And soon to be...blinded by tears...**_

As Kagome angrily fired another arrow at Kikyo with her own energy, she allowed her enraged tears to flow freely. But all the rage in the world could not spare Kagome for what happened next as Kikyo disappeared before her eyes...

**_...I know I can stop the pain...if I will it all away..._**

Kikyo reappeared behind Kagome and blasted her with the fullest amount of her devastating attack, sending Kagome flying upward in a tangle of red 'ribbons' of pure, hateful, energy. Kagome was burned painfully and her clothes torn and ragged, and it was there, elevated in the sky and dying of pain, that Kagome could feel the smallest amount of energy in her reserves being drained. Her soul was slowly leaving her body.

_Gods...what do I do...I can't...I can't save them now...or even myself..._ Kagome thought to herself as the pain closed in around her heart, as if preparing to squeeze it and kill her instantly. Oh, how an instant death would be appreciated then...

"...I saved the best for you, my dear reincarnation...I shall now regain my soul..." Kikyo said in a slightly eager manner.

Kagome allowed her head to loll backward and she looked at the ground. There she saw Inuyasha's fallen form. He had believed in her...and now...she had failed.

Kikyo was looking at the young woman expectantly, watching with evil, yet, joyful eyes as Kagome was forced to scream because of the pain and evil enclosing around her heart. Kikyo would squeeze the life out of her, and Kagome's soul was already leaving her as well. She could barely feel its remnants that remained.

Kagome felt cold stone roll down her neck and the Shikon no Tama fell from its place hidden in her t-shirt and dangled about her neck and face.

**_Don't...turn away..._**

_**Don't give in to the pain...**_

_**Don't...try to hide...**_

_**Though they're screaming your name...**_

_**Don't...close your eyes...**_

_**God knows what lies behind them...**_

_**Don't...turn out the lights...**_

_**Never sleep...never die...**_

_The jewel...I...can still use the jewel..._ Kagome thought to herself desperately. Using all of the energy that was left inside of her, she closed her eyes and made the only wish that she thought made sense at the time. Gods...may her friends forgive her...

_Please...Midoriko-sama...help me...help me win this fight...for my friends..._

With that thought, a blue light engulfed the jewel and Kagome. The 'ribbons' of hate disintegrated and the young miko was hidden from view.

"What is going on?!?!?!?" Kikyo yelled into the light in mild hesitation. She could not see in, and that, she knew, was dangerous.

Inside the ball of light with Kagome:

**_Fallen angels at my feet..._**

_**Whispered voices at my ear...**_

'Kagome...Kagome...can you hear me...?' came a comforting voice.

Suddenly, Kagome's eyes snapped open and were full of the life that she had nearly lost, "I...I can hear you...but...who are you...and what is going on...?"

Within the blue light that surrounded her, Kagome heard a kind and loving chuckle, 'You ask me for help...and then ask me who I am? How odd Kagome...but no matter...I am here to do as you asked...to help you win this...'

**_Death before my eyes..._**

_**Lying next to me I fear!**_

"But how can only two of us win? Kikyo is so strong..." Kagome whispered to herself in doubt. Midoriko heard her, however.

'...Why Kagome, the way you doubt your own power concerns me...You have the ability to defeat Kikyo on your own...but you must tap into yourself first.'

"Tap...into myself?" Kagome asked timidly. Midoriko then became visible before her.

The goddess was wearing a beautiful, cream colored, and luxurious kimono with golden roses embroidered into it with a golden obi to tie it as well. Her hair, however, was wavy and untamed, like Kagome's, and not in any sort of style. Her brown eyes seemed to radiate a slightly blue hue here and there, which made Kagome gaze at her in awe. The former Miko was the loveliest woman that Kagome had ever met.

'Yes...but we do not have the time for me to teach you that...so I must ask you to take a risk...are you willing?'

Kagome's response needed no thought, "Of course I am willing or else I'd have not fought to begin with!" Despite the annoyance and volume of her tone, Midoriko smiled at Kagome as she began to fumble for an apology. Most would be smarter than to trifle with a goddess.

**_She beckons me shall I give in..._**

_**Upon my end shall I begin...**_

'It is all right my friend...your fiery spirit is needed in battle, however...allow me to join with you...and I promise that we will be victorious...but I warn that you may use the last of your energy...'

"I don't care...but...join with me? How?"

Midoriko smiled, '...you will see...' And with that, the blue light blinded them both.

**_Forsaking all I've fallen for I rise to meet the end..._**

Kagome felt as she became strangely whole...more whole than she had felt in a long, long time.

"Midoriko-sama...how is it that you can be here, when your soul is trapped inside the jewel?" she asked, as a peaceful bliss seemed to overtake her body. From deep within her very being came Midoriko's soothing voice.

'You purified the jewel...and saved the remnants of my soul, therefore, I can be free...and I owe you...so this I do as a favor...not as a request...'

The light surrounding Kagome burst forth once more and shattered like glass around her and she partially blacked out, no longer being surrounded by the healing light. She began to fall from the sky, gravity now doing its job. As she fell she saw Kikyo's bewildered face...and something forming in the distance below her. It glowed and sparkled and shone with the brightest of lights.

'Just touch it Kagome...and I shall do the rest...you may rest now...' Obeying the voice of Midoriko, which now seemingly filled her entire being, Kagome outstretched her hand toward the object and closed her eyes. She would trust her new ally.

Shining in the depths of the light emerged Kagome, however, to Kikyo, something had changed. Her power had not only skyrocketed, but it had developed an unearthly quality to itself as well. When Kagome emerged, still falling from the light, she held in her hand a golden bow and a single, golden arrow.

As she continued to fall, her body glowed once more. Pure white wings emerged from her back and spread out beautifully. A beautiful, yet simple, white kimono appeared about her body. There was a sky blue dragon winding about it delicately and a sky blue obi to finish it off. As Kagome neared the ground in what should have been her final seconds she snapped open her eyes to reveal a glowing blue to match her dragon. Her wings thrust themselves skillfully in those final moments and Kagome righted herself and landed with ease. It was then that she spoke to the dumbfounded Kikyo, but her voice was not Kagome's...

"Kikyo, former guardian of the Shikon no Tama, aid in the death of some of the most courageous souls in all of time, it is time that your pitiful existence be extinguished!"

**_Don't...turn away!!!_**

_**Don't...give in to the pain...**_

The being in front of her charged and Kikyo, in a fit of anger, flew to meet her. Energy sparked from the two opponents and waves of power flew everywhere.

**_Don't...try to hide!!!_**

_**Though they're screaming your name...**_

'Kagome' then dodged as Kikyo's evil energy burst forth, uncontrolled and even more dangerous, after her. She flew at Kikyo so fast that Kikyo had not enough time to dodge before 'Kagome' was upon her. With a superior battle cry she thrust forward her wings and snapped Kikyo's back and broke them off completely. Kikyo screamed in pain as she began to fall to the ground.

**_Don't...close your eyes!!!_**

_**God knows what lies behind them...**_

"Kikyo...you were once a great woman...but your soul became corrupt...and for this I am sorry...but I still shall show you no mercy!!!" 'Kagome' cried as she notched her golden arrow. With skill that was not her own, she released the arrow and it sailed downward at Kikyo. With a scream that could be heard for miles, Kikyo was struck in her black heart, and she burst into ash. She was then as she should have always been. Good had won.

**_Don't...turn out the light!!!_**

_**Never sleep...never die...**_

'Kagome' landed gracefully on the ground with her wings spread outward slightly. She looked to her left and saw the fallen Inuyasha, and Koga a few yards away. Her eyes softened in admiration, and even some slight pity.

"My friend...for you, this I shall also do as a favor...may what wish you all make be as gallant as your sacrifices..." Closing her eyes and abandoning her wings to conserve power, the woman clasped her hands and chanted in the language of Heaven a chant that called forth her own powers.

Within the wreckage of the palace came forth the remains of the other warriors, glowing a majestic blue. Slowly, they all began to regenerate. Once the bodies were all whole and intact, the goddess within Kagome put forth an incredible wave of power, one that spanned from her body outward at an amazing pace. Once it hit the bodies, the hearts simultaneously, from the most recently deceased to the earliest lost, began to beat.

And as their lungs gasped for their first breaths of air, Inuyasha slowly opened his eyes. As Kagome collapsed from her loss of power Inuyasha completely awoke and quickly stumbled over to her in fear for her.

"Kagome!!!"

One week later:

Kagome opened her eyes slowly at the warm feeling that was covering her body. She glanced around at her surroundings in alarm and bolted upright, gaining the attention of the three occupants of the room.

"Kagome! You're awake!!!" Shippo yelled, bouncing into the said girl's lap. Kagome, now realizing that she was in Kaede's village, hugged the small kitsune in relief.

"Oh, Shippo!!! How are you?!?" Shippo beamed.

"I'm happy now that I know that you are safe! Inuyasha told me that you defeated Kikyo and that everyone was dead, but now they aren't dead, and everyone is confused, and you've been out for a week, and we've all been worried, and we want some answers...but we'll get them now and feel all better now that you are awake...so what happened?" Shippo said, all in one breath.

Kagome couldn't help but laugh. It was then that she felt two strong arms encircle themselves around her shoulders and waist and hold her tightly.

"...What he means is that we were worried, and once you feel up to it, you can tell us what happened...ok?" Inuyasha said soothingly. Kagome closed her eyes and allowed herself to enjoy the embrace.

"Ye should rest a bit more...ye have only just awaken...and to all of these questions as well. Inuyasha, take Shippo outside and inform everyone that she is well, will ye? I shall look after her for ye..." Lady Kaede said kindly. Inuyasha growled slightly but nodded, he was much more agreeable with the old hag when it had to do with Kagome's health, so he gave her a final squeeze and lifted Shippo from her arms.

"I'll be back soon then...all right?" he said, as if to make sure Kagome didn't mind. She nodded and Inuyasha smiled softly at her before exiting with Shippo.

"Now child...rest, and ye shall do much explaining later..."

"All right Lady Kaede...you know best..."

3 hours later:

Kagome stretched and exited the hut. She had needed that extra three hours, which she found to be quite odd, since she had already been out for a week...

"Kags!!! You're up!" Kagome didn't have time to look at who spoke before Hekele glomped her, nearly causing her to fall over.

"Hekele!!! Don't kill her you high on coffee freak!!!" Kachie yelled before giving Kagome a crushing hug of her own. After being let go and remembering how to breathe, Kagome laughed at their antics.

"I'm glad that you're all ok too...but don't squeeze the life out of me yet!" she said. Just then, a ball of fur launched itself at Kagome, who barely had time to catch it before it hit her.

"Hello to you too Shippo..." she said, squeezing him as she had done earlier.

Kagome then looked up and saw that the rest of her friends were coming to join the group. Sango gave her a huge hug, as did Miroku. Kagome was a bit wary of him but was happy when she found that he kept his hands to himself for once. Koga gave her a light embrace as well, before putting an arm around Kachie and preventing her from squeezing Kagome once more. Sesshoumaru was now standing next to Hekele, with Rin tugging at his hand, happy that the miko was awake finally. Kagome raised an eyebrow at the fact that he was allowing her to do so, seeing as he usually didn't, but said nothing.

Inuyasha then appeared behind her as he had done before, and gave her another hug.

"About time, Kagome...look who else is here..." he said, turning Kagome toward one of the huts.

Kagome's eyes widened as Kanna and Kagura stepped out of the hut nonchalantly, as though it were the most normal thing in the world. Kohaku, who had arrived at the village just before the others, followed them.

Kanna wore an aqua colored kimono, which brought out the intense color of her eyes. Her hair was in a messy bun at the nape of her neck, and small strands of hair framed her face perfectly. Kagome had had to do a double take.

Kagura wore her usual kimono but her hair was in a ponytail, which was probably the result of spending too much time with Hekele, Kachie, Rin, and Sango. She didn't seem to mind though.

"Wow you two...you look great! And Kanna...it is quite a change isn't it?" Kagome asked, beaming at her new friends. Kanna smiled shyly.

"A change for the better..." she said. Kagome nodded in agreement before greeting Kagura once more.

"I must say, I really didn't expect you two to stick around with us after the battle...why did you?" she asked curiously. Kagura rolled her eyes as though it were obvious, but smiled none-the-less.

"We own you all. First, despite our differences, you decided to help us; second, Hekele freed us from Naraku's control; and third, after you purified Naraku AND us, you brought us back to life. So, we've decided that we owe the lot of you..." she listed. It was Hekele's turn to roll her eyes.

"Kagura, you gave us information, so we helped you; you then gave us a potion to help us heal and THEN you defied Naraku and tried to help us in battle, so I freed you, then, from what I gather, you fought off a bunch of Naraku's incarnations, and then died when you shouldn't have. All in all, you became our friend. THAT'S probably why Kagome resurrected you as well..." she said, nodding to her friend.

Kagome smiled in turn and stated, "Yup...though, to be honest, it wasn't me who brought you all back...it was Midoriko. I was mostly unconscious when it happened...but I think she used a lot of my energy to help...since it took me so long to wake up and all..."

Miroku looked skeptical, "If you made a wish on the jewel, then why is it still in existence?"

Kagome smiled, "The wish I made was for the power to stop Kikyo, and to avenge you...but...I guess it wasn't really a wish...I asked her for help...and she created this giant sphere of energy and I was trapped inside. Then she spoke to me...and told me that because I purified the jewel and freed her soul, she would aid me as a favor, not a wish...and she did."

Sesshoumaru looked to be deep in thought as he spoke, "And were our resurrections a favor as well?"

Kagome nodded, "She said that she hoped the wish we made on the jewel was as gallant as our sacrifices..."

The group gazed in awe at the jewel, which still clung to Kagome's neck. It was a few minutes before anyone spoke.

"So...how did you two defeat Kikyo?" Kohaku asked out of the blue, startling the rest of the group. Kagome smiled again as she saw Sango put her arm around her brother and give him a squeeze.

"...Well...she asked me to take a risk...she said that it could use all of my energy...but I agreed anyway..." she began, wondering what they would all say when she told them.

"And...come on! Don't leave us hanging!!!" Sango said enthusiastically. The group had waited a week to hear this story...and she'd be damned if Kagome got away with the silent treatment.

Kagome laughed, "Ok, ok...she asked me if she could...join with me...as in entering my body and taking over my consciousness...it was incredible..." The group was now staring at her in awe.

Kagura was the first to speak, "What...was it like?"

"It was odd, because I didn't have control of my body, but I did my soul...and it was like we both shared control of my mind...it felt like...like bliss. I didn't have to care, though I did, and I could feel everything she was feeling. She was so angry at Kikyo it seemed...I have no idea why...but she was...perhaps because she had once protected the jewel...who knows..." Kagome said, revealing in the memory.

"...It was interesting...because when she took over my body...it was like I transformed...I had wings like Kikyo's only they were white...and...I just...felt different...more powerful...and it wasn't her power I was feeling either...though, it was laced with hers...I just...don't know..." she finished, still a bit bewildered.

Inuyasha hugged her a bit tighter out of reflex and rested his chin on her head. He and the rest of the group were deep in thought. They couldn't believe what had happened. Just the thought of it seemed unreal. Kagome had been the host to a goddess. It was incredible to think about.

Kagome took the jewel from her neck and, after worming out of Inuyasha's embrace, set it in his hand.

"Ok...now, the last time I did this, Kikyo burst out of nowhere and shot you in the shoulder with a purifying arrow...let's hope that doesn't happen again..." she joked as, for the second time, Inuyasha gave her a confused look.

"But...after what happened...you should be the one to make the wish..." he said, still afraid of touching the jewel, though it rested in his hand.

"...Nope...I wouldn't know what to wish for...you do," she said lovingly. Inuyasha smiled at her and thought hard about what he wanted to wish for. Inuyasha had to think back to something that had bothered him when Naraku had been holding Kagome off the edge of the cliff, besides the obvious of course. Something Naraku had said bothered him. And when he recalled that, he knew what his wish was going to be...

"Ok...here goes...I wish-" he was cut off by something biting his neck. He slapped at it, thinking it to be a bug...and it was...sort of.

"Ouch...you've...squashed me...again..." came a rather annoying voice from Inuyasha's palm.

"Myoga-geezer? What the hell are you doing here?!?!?!?!?"

Kagome stared at the flea demon angrily, "Where have you been?!?!?!? Shippo was kidnapped, you weren't there, my friend comes to live with me and then travels here, and you weren't there, HER friend comes to stay for a year, and you haven't met her either! Rin and Shippo get kidnapped, and you weren't there, all of us girls were kidnapped, and you weren't there, the boys came to rescue us and we were all sent into different dimensions to await our doom, and you weren't there, we had to fight Naraku, and you weren't there, and then I had to fight Kikyo on my own, (at first,) and YOU WEREN"T THERE!!!! So...WHY THE HECK ARE YOU HERE NOW?!?!?!?!"

Everyone stared at Kagome in fear, even Sesshoumaru. Then, while she was still staring down the now trembling flea, Hekele spoke.

"So...who's your friend?" At this, Myoga jumped from Inuyasha's hand to Hekele's shoulder and introduced himself.

"Hello, my name is Myoga, the faithful servant of Master Inuyasha..." Inuyasha snorted.

"The only thing your good for is sensing danger...'cuz you're never here!" he growled at the flea. Hekele nodded, while trying not to laugh.

"That's not important, what's important is that you've got the entire jewel, now, what are you going to wish for?" Myoga asked, as he posed to take a sip of Hekele's blood, which she was unaware of at the time.

Inuyasha glared at him, "I was getting to that when you bit me you idiot..."

Myoga looked thoughtful, "Oh, then by all means, carry on...don't mind me..." He moved in to take a bite out of Hekele's neck when Sesshoumaru flicked him off.

"Keep to yourself and you might not get squashed so many times..." he muttered. Hekele, catching on, spared the flea a glare as she picked up Rin, who had been trying to patiently stand there.

Inuyasha cleared his throat, "Can I make my wish or are we just going to sit here and yell at him all afternoon?!?!"

Kagome put her head on his shoulder, "Go ahead...make your wish..."

Inuyasha smiled at her and closed his eyes, tightening his grip on the Shikon no Tama as he did so. This time, he kept his wish to himself. Sure, it was a corny wish, but he couldn't think of anything that made more sense to him...

_I wish...that even without this jewel...no matter what...we could always be together...all of us..._

With that, the jewel began to glow, much like it had when Midoriko had come to Kagome. The light engulfed everyone.

The group of friends got this warm feeling, and they felt different somehow. When the light cleared, the jewel was gone.

"Umm, Inuyasha...what did you wish for?" Kagome asked in a concerned tone.

Inuyasha turned to face her and the rest of the group. What he saw surprised him greatly. Miroku, Kohaku, and the girls, (including Rin,) all had what appeared to be demonic markings. They were all looking at themselves and each other in confusion.

"Inuyasha? What did you wish for?" Koga asked from next to Kachie. His arm was wrapped around her firmly and his eyes held a bit of concern.

Inuyasha was baffled, "I-I wished that we could all be together no matter what...Naraku had said that once we made a wish on the jewel it would disappear...and since that was everyone's only method of getting through the well...they would have to chose where to stay...and that wouldn't be right..." he said.

The rest of his friends got a look of recognition on their faces. They recalled that conversation quite well. They had all been concerned by it as well.

"So...we're demons now...we'll each live the life span you all will...but how does that solve our well issues?" Kachie asked, still looking at herself and her friends.

"Well," Hekele began, as she looked Rin's markings over, "There's only one way to find out...to the well everyone!"

Kagome nodded in agreement, "Let's go..."

When the large group of friends reached the well, they stared down it warily. Kagura, Kanna, and Kohaku, who have never actually seen the well, were curious as to how it worked.

"Ok, Inuyasha, since you can travel through the well without the shards anyway, you'll come and get us in a few minutes if we don't come back on our own...ok?" Kagome asked. Inuyasha nodded, still unsure.

Hekele set Rin down and gave Sesshoumaru a quick hug; Kachie did the same to Koga.

"Wish us luck you guys..." Kachie said. Koga looked at the well skeptically.

"Yeah...good luck..." he said, still staring at the well. Kachie rolled her eyes at him and stepped up to the well with Hekele and Kagome.

The three took a deep breath and jumped in. They disappeared at the bottom.

Kagura stood there in shock, "They're gone! What the hell happened?!"

Inuyasha smirked, "They went through time...to the future..."

"And...do you think that they can come back?" Kanna asked. Inuyasha and his friends shrugged.

"Not a clue..."

In Modern Tokyo:

"Kagome..." Hekele began, looking at where her demonic markings were suppose to be on her wrists, "something odd is going on here..."

Kachie nodded, "Yeah...we're human again..."

**Me-** Wow...that took forever and a year...

**Sesshoumaru-** You can say that again...

**Me-** Ok, Wow...that took forever and a year...

**Sesshoumaru-** I was being sarcastic...

**Me-** I know...I couldn't help it though...

**Inuyasha-** ...That was one odd wish...I ain't even a full demon...

**Kagome-** Well, this could be a good wish...but...why are we humans now

demons...and why are we human in the future?

**Me-** I'll answer part of that...think about it, though. If we were going to be in

love with demons, then we would have to accept mortality. We would all die

and leave them there...and they would be sad. So, Inuyasha, when he

wished for us all to remain together always, turned us into demons. Another

perk: we don't have to go through what Inuyasha and his mother did.

**Kachie-** Oh, and Kaleb, Hekele tried to send you a message in reply to your

request, but your address; , wouldn't accept it.

Hekele would be honored if you wanted to use her characters in your

story. Just please; give her credit for creating them...

**Me-** Yup, yup!!!

Pound, pound, pound...

**Inuyasha-** What was that?

**Sesshoumaru-** No idea...

**In the distance**

**Kikyo-** You are dumping me for another lover?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

**Naraku-** Actually...there's more...

**Kikyo-** ...Like...?

**Naraku-** Umm, see, there are two of them...

**Kikyo-** Two?!?!??!?!?!?!?!?

**Darcia and Myotismon pop into fic** Didn't you dump this damn clay pot

yet?!?!

**Kikyo-** You're dumping me for two MEN?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! Die!!!!!!!!! (throws

random things at Naraku.)

**Back with us**

**Me-** Oh...my...god...

**Inuyasha-** I knew it...

**Sesshoumaru-** R&R...before we die of shock...


	18. Interesting Quirks and Fun With the Boys

**Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love**

Wow...you guys sure like this fic...I am touched...

Ok, most of you missed the part where I said that you guys would get an EXTRA chapter before the epilogue...well; you do...so live with it...

I am sorry to say, but I forgot to mention who was which type of demon. Kachie is a wolf/fire demoness; Hekele and Rin are dog/rain demonesses; Kagome is a dog/kitsune demoness; Sango is an ice/mind-reading demoness, (think Yukina from Yu-Yu Hakusho;) Kohaku is a pure ice demon; and Miroku is a lightning demon.

Now, some people asked why the girls turned back into humans when they went through the well...you SHALL get your answer...got it?!?

Well, I have left you all hanging...so here's the chappie...

**Interesting Quirks and Fun With the Boys**

"Umm, this is interesting..." Kagome said, inspecting herself. Her previous markings had disappeared as well. She also felt weaker.

_This must be how Inuyasha feels..._ she thought to herself.

Kachie paused and then smiled, "Kagome...Hekele...I have an interesting theory that I would like to try out..."

Hekele stared at Kachie for a moment, studying her face, before realizing her idea. Her eyes got wide when she did and she shook her head slightly.

"If you are right...then this is a _bad_ idea..." she muttered, climbing up the well. Kagome stared at the two in confusion, not getting the idea through her head.

"What's going on?" she asked as she and Kachie made their way up the well after Hekele. When they reached the top, Hekele answered.

"I am afraid that you are going to find out..." With that, the three girls jumped into the well, hoping that they could pass through. And they did.

Joy filled their hearts as the familiar weightless feeling washed over them. They knew that they would forever be able to pass between times. One milestone down, and perhaps less than few to go...

The trio smiled as they landed with ease on the other side of time. And when they saw the relieved smiles of their loved ones, their smiles broadened.

"Hey! They made it back!!! Yay!" Shippo bounced up and down. The girls could see his head pop up every now and then as they climbed to the top, making them smile more. Once they were over the edge, however, their faces became somewhat serious.

"Something odd happened when we went back," Hekele stated, addressing everyone. She had to fight a smirk, which both Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha noticed. Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow and side-glanced Inuyasha, who shrugged slightly.

"What happened?" Inuyasha questioned. It was then that Kagome figured out what Hekele and Kachie were planning, and her eyes widened. This was going to be either the funniest thing that she had ever experienced, or the most horrific. Praying for the former, she responded.

"...We'll show you...everyone get ready to jump..."

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes slightly in suspicion, "All of us?"

Kagome looked to Hekele and Kachie, who nodded, "Yep..." she said, "All of you..."

With that said, the girls all jumped into the well once more. This time, however, the rest of their friends, Kagura, Kanna, and Kohaku included, followed them. Myoga and Jakken elected to disappear at the time they disappeared into the time warp, so they were exempted.

On the other side:

Hekele, Kagome, and Kachie climbed up the side of the well as soon as they landed, to make room for the rest of the gang. They had only just climbed over the edge when the first round of the group appeared at the bottom. Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru, Kagura, Kanna, and Rin met their gazes.

"What is so important that you drag us to this polluted era-hey...wait a minute...I can't smell anything!" Inuyasha panicked. Looking at his hands and seeing no claws, he made the unwanted observation that the girls had anticipated.

"I'm human?!?" he yelled, shock and anger filling his features. It was then that he realized that his vision and hearing were affected as well. He was definitely mortal.

Sesshoumaru and Kagura seemed to be having an equally difficult time accepting the fact, for they too were mortal.

Sesshoumaru had long obsidian-black hair, like Inuyasha's, though still much more tame. His eyes had turned a dark brown like Inuyasha's as well, however, his were slightly darker. His demonic markings were gone, as were his claws, tail, fangs, and his heightened senses of hearing and smell. It did not take a fool to see the annoyance and even uncertainty lacing his face.

Kagura was much the same. Her claws and fangs were gone. The feathers that grew from her head with her hair had disappeared, and her extreme senses had left her as well. She and Kanna were very shocked. Rin seemed to be taking the transformation much more lightly, considering that she had been human until half an hour or so ago to begin with.

"Why are we mortal? What is the meaning of this?" Sesshoumaru growled, and was appalled by how weak it sounded. He could hear Inuyasha snicker and wasted no time in 'accidentally' knocking him roughly into the side of the well, on the notion that his eyes had yet to adjust to the darkness. This made everyone else laugh, for they knew the truth. The group in the well cautiously climbed out and stepped awkwardly onto the ground surrounding the well. Just then, the rest of their companions appeared at the bottom of the well where they had just been. Koga was the first to be heard.

"I'M A WEAK HUMAN?!?!?!?"

Three hours later:

Everyone was sitting inside the Higurashi home, only slightly calmer than they had been before. Kirara was running around with Buyo once more, happy to be with her new 'friend' again. Sesshoumaru and Hekele had gone with Rin to retrieve a bag of her new clothing and Sango had gone with them for hers as well. They had located them quickly, thanks to the fact that Kaede had saved them from the former ruble of the town for the girls. Hekele found it amusing how Sesshoumaru seemed much more at ease once he found that his powers would indeed return once he returned home, but she said nothing.

Once everyone was back, Kagome had called her mother's cell-phone and had explained the situation to her. Souta was at school and Kagome's grandfather was running around town for the day. The large group had the whole house to themselves, which was a good thing.

Kagura, Kanna, Kohaku, Sesshoumaru, and Miroku were questioning everything that they saw. Rin was more than happy to give the gang a tour of the house, which the girls all found to be quite cute. When they got to Kagome and Hekele's room, Rin made a mad dash for Tai's cage, glad to see her little friend again.

She carefully picked him up and carried him over to Sesshoumaru, who found Rin's enthusiasm for giving a tour a bit amusing, "This is Hekele-chan's pet guinea pig, Tai-chan! Tai-chan is cute!" She held him up proudly as she said this. Kagura and Kanna peeked their heads into the room in time to witness the funny expression on Sesshoumaru's face as Rin placed the little animal in his hands.

"...It's a rat...with no tail..." he said, staring at the little critter. Hekele, who was sitting on her bed, rolled her eyes and stood up.

"_He_ is a _guinea pig_, **not** a rat...and he's kind of cute too..." she said as she walked up to Sesshoumaru and claimed her pet. Seeing his questioning expression, Hekele grinned.

"And he is quite useful as well..." she said. Sesshoumaru cocked an eyebrow.

"How so?" he asked challengingly, believing her to be joking. Hekele beamed and ushered Kagura and Kanna into the room. She placed Tai on the floor and he ran under the bed. She held up a finger for silence and then called out the door.

"Inuyasha!!! I need your help with something!!!" She then heard a disgruntled groan, which was followed by footsteps heading in their direction.

"...What do you want n-OW!!!" he yelped as he entered the room. As soon as Tai had seen him he had dashed from his hiding spot and latched himself to Inuyasha's leg. Even though Inuyasha was human, Tai still could recognize his arch nemesis. Inuyasha was currently swinging his leg around madly, once again trying to get the creature off of him.

Sesshoumaru was desperately trying to contain his laughter while Kagura and Kanna openly laughed their heads off. Shippo heard all the noise and walked into the room. He had the same reddish-brown hair and bluish-green eyes as always, but he was now four ft. three inches tall, and had all human limbs. Kagome and Kohaku followed him. The hilarious scene of Inuyasha's predicament and their friends' laughter met them. It seemed that they were now more at ease with the 'time-change', and were less panicky about their lack of abilities as well.

After about a moment, Hekele had the grace to remove her pet and his death-grip from Inuyasha's leg. Sesshoumaru met her gaze, and, while fighting another fit of laughter, responded to her earlier statement.

"You were correct...he is _very_ useful..."

"Kagura...come on out...I'm sure you look fine..." Kachie muttered. Kagura had been curious about modern clothing, and Kachie had gladly given her some to try on...and now she was complaining that she could see her stomach...

"I look like a whore...and I'm wearing pants...." Kachie heard her mutter.

"Oh come on...you do not look like a whore. Here, it is OK to show a little stomach...and Sango wears pants all the time; you don't see her complaining!"

"I'm not used to it is all!" Kagura growled.

"Oh just come out here before I get the monk...you know _he'll_ get you out...and then I'll tell Sango that you were flirting with him, and then she'll get mad, and then she'll-"

"Kill me!!! Fine! Ok! I get the message! I am coming out!" Kagura gave in. It was one thing to have Kachie nagging her, she had grown used to that over the past two weeks, but Sango was as strong as ever with her boomerang...and Kagura hurt enough when hit with it as a demon, as a human she knew she'd be out cold for a week if the slayer was mad enough at her...

Kagura walked out of the bathroom begrudgingly and was assaulted by Kachie's camera. The flash took her off guard, but once she could see straight she ran after an already fleeing Kachie, yelling promises of revenge the whole way. Not that she knew what the device had been, but Kagura wasn't too keen on being momentarily blinded by something that she didn't recognize.

Koga poked his head out of the kitchen, where Sango had been showing Miroku and himself the refrigerator and all of its wonders, when he heard Kachie shriek. What he saw was Kagura choking her to death while she waved her camera about madly, trying to get air. He sighed. Kachie and Kagura had become friends relatively quick, but even Koga had to admit that they pushed each other's buttons a _little_ too much for safety purposes...

"Would you two quit it? I doubt that Kagome's mother would want a dead girl in her living room..." he said, causing the two girls to look at him. He had his eyebrow raised and was soon accompanied by Sango and Miroku. Although Miroku's quirked eyebrow was a bit more perverted...

"...Yes Koga..." Kachie and Kagura said in unison, frightening both themselves and Koga. Sango rolled her eyes and dragged Miroku back into the kitchen, leaving the three to gap at themselves.

Inuyasha sat in front of the television flipping through the channels as he had seen Souta do so many times before. Kachie was to his left, and Kagome to his right. Next to Kachie sat Koga. Rin, Shippo, Kanna, and Kohaku were sitting on the floor, as were Sango and Miroku. Kagura was sitting on the Lazy-Boy, reading Kagome's edition of the Cosmopolitan, although she hadn't the slightest clue as to what most of it was about. Sesshoumaru and Hekele were on the love seat staring at Inuyasha with annoyed expressions on their faces.

"Inuyasha! I haven't watched anything on TV in over two weeks, heck; I haven't SEEN a TV in over two weeks, so why don't you just pick something and **WATCH** **IT**?!?!?" Hekele snarled dangerously. Inuyasha stared at her in surprise and side glanced Kagome, who snatched the remote from his hand and tossed to Hekele. Hekele then proceeded to flip the channels until she found something she liked.

"Ooh...Jeopardy!" she bounced. Sesshoumaru side-glanced her, and then looked at Kagome for a translation. Kagome smiled.

"It's a game show where you are given answers to questions and you have to give the question. Hekele's pretty good at it actually..." she trailed off as Ken Jennings took control of the board once more.

(Ken) I'll take 'Modern Day Lyrics' for $800 Alex. 

(Alex) 'As darkness quickly steals the light that shined within her eyes...she slowly swallows all her fear and soothes her mind with lies...' 

(Ken) What is, 'Michelle Branch'? 

"No you moron...it's Vanessa Carlton, the song is 'Paradise'. God...how do idiots like that get so much money?" Hekele muttered. Kagome shrugged.

(Alex) I am sorry, but it is 'Paradise' by Vanessa Carlton; that'll cost you $800 Ken. 

"Told ya..." Hekele teased. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"Just cuz you have that CD doesn't mean you're smarter than him..." Kachie said, glaring at the television.

Hekele smirked, "Ok, fine. I'll get the next one too, just watch..."

(Ken) I'll take, 'Odd Measurements,' for $1,000. 

(Alex) This amount of earth is in a whole that it one foot tall, one foot wide, and one foot across. 

(Ken) What is one cubic foot? 

"Ha! There is no earth in a hole! You cannot put something into a hole! Ha! I win!" Hekele beamed. Once more, Sesshoumaru side glanced her, but this time, the rest of the group was also openly staring at her odd peppiness. It was strange to see her argue with an inanimate object...

(Alex) I am sorry, but there isn't any earth in a hole...it just falls out the other end... 

Hekele grinned, "I rest my case."

Kagome and Kachie shook their heads while the rest of the group stared in confusion at what had just taken place. They were also still wondering about the question that had been asked when they all heard the front door open and close.

"Mom?! Grandpa?! Hey...where is every-Kagome! Kachie, Hekele! You guys are back!!! And so are Sango and Rin!!! And...who are all these other people?" Souta questioned quickly. The poor boy had just returned from the terrors of school, and so was very surprised to see his sister, Hekele, and Kachie home...and with guests. He was quite curious.

"Souta...this is Sesshoumaru, Koga, Miroku, Shippo, Kohaku, Kagura, and Kanna. Guys, this is my little twerp of a brother, Souta!" Kagome introduced. Souta lightly punched his sister's arm at the unwanted nickname and stared at one of the people in particular, one who hadn't been introduced.

"Inuyasha? Is that you?" he asked, quite surprised by the change in his hero. Inuyasha 'feh'ed' and nodded slightly.

"But...you're human...Kagome didn't get mad at you and purify you did she?!?!?" he panicked, horrified at the thought that his sister had turned his idol into a human.

Koga burst out laughing at the idea, quickly followed by Miroku, Sango, Kachie, Kagura, Hekele, Shippo, and a tentative Kagome. Sesshoumaru smirked at the thought, while Kanna and Kohaku merely shook their heads. The two still didn't feel as close to the rest of the group as their companions did, but they were working on it.

"What's so funny?!? You're all human too!" Inuyasha growled angrily. Kagome gave him a small hug and faced Souta.

"Nope...he made a wish on the jewel so that no matter what happened, we would all be able to remain together. So, when in this era, we are all human, and in their era, we are all demon..." she said fondly, still partially in awe that Inuyasha could have made such a deep and thoughtful wish. Heck, Inuyasha was wondering the same thing at that moment, seeing as how he now had the entire living room staring at him with mocking expressions...

"Wow...and here I thought he wanted to be a full demon too..." Souta wondered aloud.

"Yeah...I did...but _no_, I had to be the nice one..." Inuyasha grumbled in a low voice. Sesshoumaru, Koga, and Kagura smirked while everyone else rolled their eyes.

Souta sat down and Kagome explained all the details of the past few weeks to him. He hadn't been brought up to speed at all. The last he had seen the girls was the night before he, his mother, and his grandfather had gone to visit their ill relative. They had left without a note...or anything...

"So that's it...we're done...we've beaten Naraku, and Kikyo, and we've made our wish on the completed Jewel...we did it!" she finished excitedly. Souta just stared at her and the rest of the group for a bit. He was amazed. He bounced and gave his sister a huge hug, surprising her greatly.

"All right sis! You kicked butt!" he exclaimed. Kagome returned the hug and then spun him around to face Shippo, Kanna, Kohaku, and Rin.

"Now...why don't you and Rin show those three how to play your video games...I think they're getting bored watching Hekele beat a genius at Jeopardy..." she said, earning a glare from Hekele. Souta nodded and headed upstairs, closely followed by Rin, who was dragging Kanna, Kohaku, and Shippo behind her.

Sesshoumaru looked to Hekele questioningly, not sure what was going on. Hekele just smiled at him a bit and rested her head on his shoulder contently. Sesshoumaru understood that it was apparently no big deal, and so let it go. He was a bit apprehensive about letting Rin out of his sight in this era for long, however...he wasn't familiar with it yet...

Kagura also seemed a bit nervous, "Where did they go? What's a 'video game'?"

Kagome grinned, "They are pretty fun, depending on your personal taste...Souta has a bunch of fighting video games. You put a disc into a machine that makes the information on the disc visible on the screen, and then you use a controller to play the game. You could either go through different levels, that increase in difficulty as you go, or, you can play specific levels, also, in fighting games, you choose players in the game and use the controllers to fight each other with them." Kagura gave her a blank stare, proving that she understood nothing past 'fight each other'. Kachie sighed.

"Don't worry Kagura...I'll show you later...it's easier to show than to explain..." she muttered. Kagome stuck out her tongue.

It was then that Sango had an idea.

"...Why don't we take everyone shopping? They will need clothes to blend in while in this era as well will they not?" she asked. Kagome, Hekele, and Kachie's faces lit up evilly.

"Yes...yes they shall...they need to blend in...blending in is good..." Kachie muttered psychotically. Hekele's grin broadened.

"Oh yes...this shall be fun...fun...fun...FUN!!!" she bounced, startling Sesshoumaru. He looked at her with both confusion and a hint of worry.

"What's gotten into you?" he asked. Kagome decided to answer.

"Do you know what a guy's worse nightmare in this era is?" she prodded. Everyone shook their heads, the men of the group a bit more fearfully. Kachie continued for Kagome.

"They fear teenage girls with credit cards and a need to shop...and you will soon find out why...Muahahahahaha!" she cackled, making Koga move away from her in complete and utter fear.

Kagura looked interested, "Then what are we waiting for?!? Fear is good!"

Kagome decided to start organizing, "Ok, Shippo and Kohaku can borrow some stuff from Souta, but the rest of you will have to use my grandfather's clothes. When we get to the mall and buy some stuff that you like, you can change out of them, ok?"

Hekele nodded in agreement, "And Kanna could probably borrow an outfit from Rin, I doubt she'd mind."

Kachie grinned, "This is gonna be a ball...come on! Let's get ready!!!"

Kanna stood examining herself in Kagome's mirror. She had borrowed a blue sundress from Rin to wear to the mall. She had even put her hair into a half ponytail. Rin really was a sweet girl, and she liked her a lot. She was the one who had showed Kanna how to play cards, and had even gotten Shippo to no longer fear her. She was rather content with her as a friend. And on top of all that good stuff, Kanna was being taken shopping in another era... In short, Kanna was rather excited...and she liked the feeling.

Kohaku walked out of Souta's room with a pair of his Khaki pants and a light gray shirt with, 'Megadeath' written in black across the front. He looked at his sister, whom was now wearing some red cargo pants with black dragons on the sides and a black tank top with a red lettered, "Property of Mr. Vampire," written on it. She had her hair pulled back into a ponytail with a red scrunchie.

"Sango...that looks simply _lovely_ on you..." came a voice behind her. Kohaku made his getaway before he got caught in the crossfire. He knew that the monk was up to something, and even though his sister was going to marry him, (which only a few of their friends knew of,) she still grew rather annoyed with his perverted ways. Kohaku didn't really wish to deal with an angry Sango...

As he rounded the corner, he heard the telltale slap. He grinned as he shook his head; those two were too much to bear sometimes...the hilarity that his sister was involved in knew no end.

Kohaku leaned against the wall to await the others...and to warn them of Sango's new foul mood. He had been there but a minute when the door next to him opened and out stepped Kanna. She was wearing a blue dress, and her hair was in a half ponytail. Kohaku couldn't help but blush a bit; she looked...kind of...cute...

"Uh, hi..." he said, in a bit of shock. Kanna blushed a bit as well. She hadn't expected anyone to be standing there. She twirled around in the dress and then looked at him.

"What do you think? I was thinking about getting one like it when we go..." she said, coming out of her momentary stupor. Kohaku shrugged a bit to hide his blush.

"It's...uh...It...looks nice..." he said sheepishly. Kanna beamed.

"Thank you!" she said sweetly. She smiled at him for a moment before she saw an irritated Sango come up behind Kohaku and drag him towards the stairs.

"Come on...I need to get this over with...stupid monk..." she growled. She smiled once more and shook her head when she saw the monk staggering towards the stairs in what he had been give to wear to the mall. He had a red handprint decorating his right cheek. Would he ever learn? Kanna followed him down the stairs to await the rest of their friends.

"...What is taking Sesshoumaru so long? God, he's as bad as the girls!" Inuyasha complained. Hekele and Kagome shot him a look.

"Inuyasha, just because YOU aren't six foot some odd inches doesn't mean that he isn't..." Hekele muttered. Miroku was currently assisting poor Sesshoumaru in finding something that he could possibly wear and look semi decent, but when the two came out of the room with Sesshoumaru frowning and Miroku shaking his head, it was apparent that they had had no such luck.

"Kagome, why does your grandfather have to be so short? There isn't anything in here that could even _pretend_ to**_ try _**to pass as something Sesshoumaru could wear..." Miroku complained. He had had to deal with all of Sesshoumaru's comments. It was bad enough that he had to help him find something, (Inuyasha had flat out refused, and Koga wasn't in the mood to try,) but his constant growling was getting annoying.

The girls giggled. "Well, I guess I'll have to buy you something and come back to give it to you so that you can come back to the mall with me and pick out stuff that you like..." Hekele said, sighing. "I refuse to do all of your shopping and end up getting you stuff that you hate..." she finished. Sesshoumaru gave her a semi apologetic/semi thankful look.

"If it would not be too much trouble...or I could accompany your at a later day and shop," he said. Hekele shook her head with a smile.

"Nope, it's no trouble, I need the excercise anyway."

"Hekele, do you even know what size he is?" Sango asked. Hekele paused, and then gave Sesshoumaru a big hug around the waist, surprising him.

"I'd say he's about a thirty/thirty-two inch waist and probably about a thirty-eight/forty inch length," she said matter-of-factly when she let go of the bewildered Sesshoumaru. Sango, Kagome, Kagura, and Kachie laughed.

"Well, I guess that works, eh Sesshoumaru?" Inuyasha said suggestively, nudging Sesshoumaru with his elbow. Sesshoumaru flushed ever so slightly before giving him a death glare, silencing him. Koga and Miroku continued to grin at him, however.

"ANYWAY, I'll get you an outfit and bring it back for you, ok?" she asked. Sesshoumaru nodded in agreement.

"Hey...can I come with you guys?" Souta asked, breaking into the conversation. Kagome shook her head.

"Nope...Someone has to stay here with Sesshoumaru in case our grandpa comes home before Hekele; he still doesn't know about everyone coming through the well. He might try to throw anti-demon talismans at him if you don't..."

Sesshoumaru gave Kagome a wary expression and she shrugged.

"Not that they work or anything, but it DOES get annoying..."

"But Sesshoumaru's human now, he wouldn't throw talismans at him, would he?" Miroku asked thoughtfully. Kachie rolled her eyes.

"He still throws them at me...and I've been human this whole damn time..." she muttered. Sango and Rin laughed, having recalled what had happened once they had come through the well. Hekele and Kagome snickered. The boys looked on in confusion, but let it go.

"Well, come on! We gotta get going!!! See you at the mall later, Sesshoumaru," Kagome politely said as she shoved everyone quite literally out the door, including Hekele and Rin.

Souta and Sesshoumaru exchanged apprehensive looks. "So, Sesshoumaru...you know how to play Checkers?"

At the mall:

"Ok gang...everyone meet back here in three hours...for those who don't know how to use a clock, it's when the little arrow thing is on the seven...got it? Good...now...SPLIT UP!!!" Kagome instructed. Kohaku, Shippo, and Miroku went with Sango; Koga and Rin went with Kachie; Kagome took Kagura, Kanna, and Inuyasha; while Hekele went into a store all by her lonesome to look for something for Sesshoumaru.

With Kachie's group:

"Ok, Rin, help me pick out some stuff for our buddy Koga here..." Kachie said evilly. Rin nodded and bounced off to the shirts without a word. Kachie dragged Koga over to the pants section and started handing him random pairs of cargo pants. Rin returned in a matter of minutes with five shirts that she had thought would be ok for Koga to wear. One was black with a picture of a dog chewing up a pair of fancy shoes on the front. On the back, "Damn dog..." was written in white. Koga grabbed the shirt and then bent down to give Rin a hug, startling the girl.

"That has to be the BEST shirt in the store Rin...Hekele taught you to shop well..." he said while grinning. Kachie elbowed him.

"Their Sesshoumaru-sama is a dog demon...Hekele would never tell Rin to buy that and you know it..." she said. Koga grinned once more.

"So? She's helping you shop for me, remember? And I think that this shirt is perfect..." Rin rolled her eyes at the two and dumped the other shirts into Koga's arms. Older people were so odd sometimes...

With Kagome's group:

"So...I take it that you like 'Hot Topic' Kagura," Kagome said, rolling her eyes as her new friend walked out of the dressing room with a baby blue halter top and baggy black cargo pants with chains. Kagura grinned.

"Yes...yes I do...this shirt isn't too bad either...I didn't think that I'd like it..." she said. Inuyasha walked out of the men's dressing room then with his black, "The voices in my head don't like you" shirt and some dark blue jeans that they had picked up in the last store. Kagome laughed.

"Inuyasha...that shirt is so you...do you like it?" she asked. Inuyasha grinned and nodded.

"Yup...I like it..." Just then, Kanna popped out of her dressing room with a shirt that said, "The voices in my head think the voices in your head are stupid" Kagura took one look at the shirt and started laughing. Inuyasha frowned, however, and Kagome just rolled her eyes. Kanna beamed.

"I agree with my shirt Inuyasha..." she said, grinning at him. Inuyasha stuck his tongue out childishly.

"And I agree with mine..."

With Sango's group:

"Sango...are you sure this is my style?" Miroku asked. He was wearing a shirt that said, "World's Biggest Moron" in big bold letters. Sango nodded.

"Yup, I think it is..." she said. Kohaku and Shippo walked up behind her with a set of their new clothes on to show her.

Kohaku was wearing a red shirt with white lettering on it, which read, "I see dumb people" and a pair of blue jeans with a dragon embroidered on the left leg.

Shippo was wearing a green shirt that had a picture of some sort of monster on it, and Sango silently wondered what, "Yu-Gi-Oh!," the words written under the monser, meant. Shippo also wore a pair of blue jeans.

"Hey...Miroku...I like your shirt...Sango picked out a good one for you..." Shippo said slyly. Kohaku grinned in agreement.

"Ha, ha...very funny...you want it?" Miroku asked dryly. Shippo shook his head.

"Nope...it wasn't made for _me_..." Shippo retaliated. Miroku bonked him on the head and then retreated back to the dressing room to try on another of the shirts. Sango smiled when he returned frowning.

"Do all of these shirts state something negative about the wearer?" he asked. Sango nodded, quite amused. Shippo and Kohaku smirked and Miroku sighed.

"Which one should I try on then? 'I hate myself' or 'I like fried squirrel'?" he asked, annoyed. Sango grinned.

"I think 'I like fried squirrel' says more about you...try that one on..."

"Yes 'Property of Mr. Vampire', I will do as you say before you sic your undead master on me..." he said sarcastically. Sango smiled evilly.

"Ok, I'll just tell him you said hi then..."

"Very funny"

"I thought so, now try on that shirt!" Miroku complied with a grumble, and when he shut the door he heard Shippo and Kohaku laughing at him.

"Just great..."

With Hekele:

Hekele was about half a block away from the shrine with Sesshoumaru's outfit. She had had to use all of her resolve not to follow Kagome's group into Hot Topic once she had seen them enter. Sesshoumaru was difficult to shop for. In the end, Hekele had gotten him a pair of khaki colored dress pants and a black silk button shirt with short sleeves. She had also bought him a nice pair of black shoes to go with the outfit. She knew that he most likely wouldn't go for the whole casual look. Sesshoumaru simply wasn't a casual being. So, she had resolved to get him something nice and sophisticated; she hoped he liked it.

Hekele was now at the door of the house. She opened the door and, after removing her shoes, walked through the hall to the living room. When she got there, she saw Souta and Sesshoumaru playing a game of Checkers.

She smiled and sat by Sesshoumaru on the couch as he made his move and took two of Souta's kings. "Not too hard to see who's winning, eh?" she asked. Souta frowned and threw his hands in the air.

"I quit! You've got me cornered again! How do you do that?!?" he asked. Sesshoumaru smirked.

"You used the same stragety that you tried in the other three games, it's simple to defeat an opponent once you figure out the flow of their moves..." he said. Souta frowned and left the room on the notion that he was going to play a game that he could actually win at.

Hekele smiled once more and handed Sesshoumaru the bag with his clothes on it, "Go put this on so we can get going, ok?" she asked. Sesshoumaru nodded silently and took the bag into the bathroom to change.

He came out a moment later and Hekele could see what she imagioned was a satisfied expression on his face. She herself was quite pleased with her skills of guess measurement, for the outfit seemed to fit him perfectly. He wore the shirt untucked, creating a more casual look to the nice outfit. Hekele thought it looked great on him.

"Wow...I'm better at this than I thought," she said teasingly. Sesshoumaru spared her a small grin.

"Thank you for bringing it to me," he said uncertainly, not really knowing what to say to her. He liked the clothing much more than the clothing he had seen the rest of the group wearing; this outfit seemed to fit his taste more, but he wasn't sure of the proper way to thank her for them.

Hekele smiled, "No on, let's get going so you can pick out some more stuff!" she said excitedly. She grabbed Sesshoumaru's hand and dragged him out the door at a hurried pace. Sesshoumaru's lips tugged into a small smile at this as she practically dragged him along. He tightened his hold on her hand slightly. This would prove to be an interesting excursion...

With everyone at the main door two hours later:

"So...did everyone find some stuff?" Kagome asked happily. Everyone nodded. Kanna, who was wearing her, "The voices in my head think the voices in your head are stupid" shirt to make Inuyasha, (who was wearing his, "The voices in my head don't like you" shirt,) mad at her, grinned.

"Oh yes...I know I found LOTS of great stuff...how about you Inuyasha?"

"Ah, shut-up brat..." was his brilliant retaliation.

Kagura and Kagome rolled their eyes at the two as everyone else laughed. Kanna had taken a shine to annoying Inuyasha, as everyone else had. To the group, it was refreshing for her to have a personality, which was still developing bit by bit, and for her to experience and show emotions as well.

Kachie yawned, "Wow...I'm getting tired...and hungry...let's head home..." Koga put an arm around her and gave her a little squeeze.

"You look like you're about to pass out ya nut..." he said playfully. Kachie beamed.

"It wouldn't be a trip to the mall without endless amounts of fatigue to follow you home..." Hekele muttered from next to Sesshoumaru and Rin.

It was then that the younger ones started yawning. It started with Rin, then it went to Shippo, then to Kohaku, then to Kanna, and then up the latter to Kagura. Sango laughed.

"It's a traveling yawn!" she said. Everyone laughed and slowly started to make their way out the door and back to the shrine. They were greeted by a lovely sunset over the Tokyo skyline.

After about a block, Kagome had Shippo on her back, sound asleep, and Sesshoumaru was carrying Rin, who was nearly there herself.

When they were half way there, Kagome noticed her three old friends walking on the opposite side of the road. They shot her, Hekele, and Kachie dirty looks and kept going, without even a pretend 'hello'. The rest of the group watched the exchange with interest, considering that Kagome, Kachie, and Hekele's faces had all scrunched up into slight snarls. Sango also had a rather unpleasant look about her face.

"You know them?" Inuyasha asked. Kagome nodded.

"Yeah...we know them...mean little things who can't go a day without gossiping about nothing to the people the gossip is about. Very opinionated."

"Thick-headed," Sango added.

"Annoying," Kachie included.

"And preppy," Hekele concluded. The boys watched their expressions as they said such angry words about the three unkind seeming girls. Not wanting to risk angering them further, they dropped the subject.

Back at the shrine:

"So...these are the infamous friends we've heard so much about...it's a pleasure to meet all of you!" Ms. Higurashi greeted sweetly. It had been so long, it seemed, since she had seen her daughter, Kachie, or Hekele. And now, here they were, with all of their friends. She was pleased that she could finally meet them all.

Souta bounced down the stairs when he heard his mother speaking to them as they entered the house. She had gotten home an hour ago, and his grandpa only half an hour sooner. Souta grinned, remembering what his mother had suggested once she had arrived in the front door.

"Mom...I set up the last of the futons!" he shouted as he ran down the stairs. He heard his grandpa mumble something incoherant from the kitchen, but paid him no mind.

"Futons?" Kagome asked. Her mother nodded.

"Yes! I thought that everyone would be tired when they got home, so I figured that I'd spare them the extra trip through time and have everyone stay here for the night!" she beamed, quite proud of herself for coming up with the idea.

Kagome sighed, "Mom...as cool as this is...do you **enjoy** taking in people into your home at random without any serious thought about the consequences? I just gotta know..." Hekele and Kachie laughed.

"Kags, if she didn't enjoy it, I'd still be in an agency waiting to be adopted, Kachie would still be in America sulking out of boredom...and neither of us would have met all of these awesome people!" Hekele said happily, leaning on Sesshoumaru a bit. Rin was still asleep on his back, and Shippo was about to fall off of Kagome's. Her mother smiled at her.

"Hekele's right, and besides, my random need to invite people into our home did some good, I'd say anyway..."

Kagome conceeded, "Yup...it certainly did...so...what are we going to eat tonight anyways? There are so many of us..."

Kagome's mother smiled and picked up a suitcase that Kagome hadn't even realzed was there. Then Souta came back downstairs with his, and their grandfather left his room with one as well, "Well, I left enough money for pizza...for a long time...we're going to go to Kyoto for a week...see you when we get back!!!" With that, the three disappeared out the door before anyone could say anything. Kagome, Hekele, and Kachie stood thee, bewildered.

"Kagome...why do I get the feeling that your mother _likes_ scaring us like that? Have you ever noticed that whenever someone from the other era comes here, or anyone new for that matter, she and the rest of your family end up packing up and disappearing for an extended period of time?" Hekele asked.

Kachie nodded, "Yeah...it's like she purposely sets all this stuff up for us and then disappears...she's odd..."

Inuyasha looked at where the door was and then gave everyone a smug look, "Well, she's never done that to me...I guess I'm the favorite..." This earned him several glares and a mysterious hit upside the head.

As it turned out, everyone ended up liking pizza, which Kagome thanked Kami above for. Kagura and Kanna fell in love with pepperoni, which turned out to be a problem, because pepperoni was both Hekele's and Kachie's favorite topping as well. Once the four were down to the last piece in the box, they had gotten into a free-for-all brawl...in which Kachie had narrowly emerged as the victor.

Everyone else was a bit more civil...until Koga tried to steal the piece that Kachie had won. He had been promptly dealt with, and knocked unconscious. No one touched Kachie's pizza after that...

After the eventful dinner, Rin and Shippo were officially put to bed. It was cute to watch the two trot off to bed only half awake. Shippo had gone straight to Souta's room, and when Hekele went to hers and Kagome's room to check on Rin, she found her not on the futon that had been provided, but on Hekele's bed, where she had slept before.

Kachie made a pot of coffee for the group and they all sat in the living room, trying to think of what to do next.

"Wanna have a Checkers tounament?" Kagome asked. Hekele shook her head.

"Sesshoumaru here would kick our butts...he already wiped the floor with poor Souta..." she said jokingly. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"Wanna play Truth or Dare?" Kachie asked. Kagome shook her head.

"Knowing our deranged minds...we'd end up daring each other to dress up as a super villan like Naraku and sing, 'I Am The Greatest...'" she muttered. The group stared at her oddly; they weren't sure which song she was speaking of, or if they had ever even heard it, but they knew the rest of what she said...and it frightened them.

"Wanna go to sleep?" Hekele asked, yawning. Kachie shook her head.

"If we fall asleep now then we'll wake up early...and I want an excuse not to go to school again..." she said plainly. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"So...what are we going to do?" she asked. Everyone shrugged.

"Hey...why don't we show Kagura and Kanna how to pillow fight? That's always fun!" Sango suggested happily. Kachie grinned.

"And then we can catch the guys in the crossfire..." she said lowly. Hekele grinned and picked up the pillow that she had been begining to lean on.

"Kagura, Kanna, the only rules are that you MUST use only pillows, no one is an ally, and no breaking stuff..." she said. With that, Hekele launched the pillow at Kagura, hitting her in the face.

Kagura looked at her, bewildered and confused, until Sango grabbed another pillow off the couch and hit Hekele with it. Kagura quickly caught on, grabbed a pillow from one of the futons, and whacked Kachie. Kanna was hit in the stomach by Kagome, bringing all of the girls into the fray. As the 'War of Pillows' began, the boys were still confused and totally lost as to what was going on. Kohaku got hit by Kanna, who stuck her tongue out at him before being hit upside the head by Kagura. Hekele hit Kagome with a pillow, and in retaliation, Hekele got hit in the chest. By this time, Sango and Kachie had began a battle to the death, which Kachie was losing.

"Is this suppose to be some sort of game?" Inuyasha whispered to Miroku. Miroku shrugged.

"I don't know know, but something about a bunch of girls fighting with pillows is kind of..."

"Enticing maybe? For once, I agree...damn it monk you're rubbing off on me..."

"About time..."

"Inuyasha! Duck!" Kagome yelled as one of Hekele's stray pillows missed its target. Inuyasha turned in time to get a face full of pillow.

"Ok...That's it...You asked for it Hekele!!!" he yelled, launching the pillow back at its owner at high speeds. Hekele was hit and fel backwards onto the Lazy-Boy. laughing her head off.

"Inuyasha, you throw like a girl!" she taunted, getting back up and launching the pillow back at him.

"Oh yea...Kagome, move it-oh shit!" Inuyasha yelled as his badly aimed pillow came flying back at him.

Miroku looked at Koga and Kohaku, "What are we waiting for?!? Grab a pillow and get in there!" he said, grabbing a pillow himself and heading straight for Sango. Kohaku grinned and started launching pillows at Kanna for hitting him earlier. He knocked her pillow out of her hand. Kanna squeaked when he came after her and she ran towards the kitchen; Kohaku not far behind.

Koga, whacked Kachie on the head, surprising her greatly. She began trying to hit him as Miroku made his entrance by hitting Sango in the side with his pillow.

Inuyasha and Kagome got into a batle of their own when Kagura joined in and nearly knocked poor Inuyasha out. Kanna came running back into the room and caught a pillow in mid air to defend herself with, Kohaku was still whacking her whenever he got a shot in.

Hekele saw Sesshoumaru sitting on the couch still, hardly even cracking a smile at what was going on around him. She bounded over to him and sat next to him.

"What's bothering you?" she asked.

"Idiocy."

"Besides that?"

"The fact that hitting other beings with pillows is considered fun."

"Oh come on...it is a good stress reliever, you get to hit someone that you are annoyed with or who annoys you in general, and not have any hard feelings involved. You should try it."

Sesshoumaru grinned slightly and tightened his grip on a pillow that he had concealed under his other arm, "Oh, is that so? No hard feelings involved?"

"Yep."

"Good," he said. With that, Sesshoumaru swong the hidden pillow at Hekele, hitting her in the face. Hekele just sat there, in complete and utter shock. She turned her head and stared bewilderedly at Sesshoumaru, who was smirking proudly.

"No hard feelings?"

"That was low...even for you, Sesshoumaru..." she said, trying to keep from laughing. She couldn't believe that he had actually planned that out...stupid sneak...

"Why thank you."

Kagura yawned and reclined in the chair. It was past ten oclock at night, and she was the last girl awake. Kanna was asleep on the couch, Kagome was asleep in Inuyasha's lap, Kachie was leaning on Koga, Sango was resting on one of the futons on the floor next to where Miroku was talking to Kohaku about random things, and Hekele was asleep on the love seat opposite of where Sesshoumaru was sitting.

Kagura looked at the group sleepily; it had been one hell of a night. She had never had so much fun in her entire life, and she was positively certain that Kanna hadn't either. She officially enjoyed pillow fights, pizza, and shopping. And she was slowly getting absorbed into magazines as well.

"I think we should get these lunatics to into their beds...if they wake up and get cranky, it isn't gonna be my fault..." Koga said, stretching. Inuyasha snickered.

"We all know how cranky Hekele gets when she's woken up in the morning...right Sesshoumaru? Didn't she make you go deaf for a minute or so that first night she was with us?" he asked. Koga's eyes widened.

"You're kidding...right? What did he do to get her mad?"

"It wasn't him...she heard bickering, woke up, and started yelling and comlaining to us...and he just so happened to be caught in the crossfire..." Inuyasha explained. Koga snickered as Sesshoumaru growled.

"I would have preferred to have forgotten that incident..." he muttered. Inuyasha grinned.

"Ain't gonna happen buddy."

"OK NOW, before you two start trying to kill each other again, let's get these girls to bed, ok?" Miroku said sternly, becoming the peacemaker. Everyone else nodded sullenly and stretched.

Inuyasha shuffled Kagome a bit and stood up with her in his arms. Koga grabbed Kachie and started heading up the stairs, followed by Miroku, who had Sango. Kagura yawned once more and headed up the stairs to scout out a place to sleep; she found an extra futon set up in Kachie's room, along with another actual bed. As she slipped under the covers of the futon, muttering a 'goodnight' to the boys who were carrying the two girls, she idly wondered why the hell this family had so many extra beds and futons laying around...

Inuyasha followed Sesshoumaru, who had Hekele, up the stairs. "Hey runt...do you think that you can get Kanna?" he asked Kohaku. The boy shrugged and walked over to her, being careful not to awaken her as he picked her up. He trudged upstairs after the two older boys and into Kagome's and Hekele's room. He set Kanna on the futon gently, covered her, and sleepily walked to Souta's room, only to find that Shippo had claimed the bed, and he was left with the futon. He muttered a promise of revenge and went to sleep.

Inuyasha watched as Kohaku left the room and smirked. The poor kid had looked dead on his feet; the monk had tired him out with his endless chatter. Inuyasha set Kagome in her bed carefully and covered her up. He looked over to where Sesshoumaru was doing the same to Hekele and shook his head.

"Your runt stole her bed..." he said jokingly. Sesshoumaru just shook his head.

"At least she left Hekele some room though," he said. It was true, Rin was curled up in a ball in the far corner of the bed. Inuyasha smiled and rolled his eyes.

"Next time Hekele might not be so lucky..." he said. Sesshoumaru smirked and turned to leave the room when he heard Inuyasha walk over by the window. He looked at him oddly.

"What are you doing?" he asked. Inuyasha held up what Sesshoumaru now knew to be a clock, and grinned.

"This is an alarm clock...and I am going to push this little button, so at some point early in the moring, it is going to go off and wake up everyone in this room. If Hekele doesn't break it...Kagome definately will. It'll be funny to watch..." he said. Sesshoumaru simply shook his head.

"As long as you don't try to blame me for it later...I really don't care..." he said, exiting the room. Inuyasha smirked once more, pressed the alarm button, and left the room after Sesshoumaru. It would be an interesting morning...

**_Beep! Beep! Beep!_ **

_Stupid alarm...shut-up..._ Hekele thought as she rolled over.

**_Beep! Beep! Beep!_**

_I'm warning you...you better shut up..._

_**BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!**_

_Last chance..._

_**BEEP! BUZZ! BEEP! BUZZ! BEEP! BUZZ! **_ CRASH, YANK, TOSS, CLANG, BOOM!

"Hekele...leave the alarm clock alone...I don't wanna buy a new one today..." Kagome muttered.

Hekele was standing over the window, one of her sais in hand. Outside the window was a sliced, diced, dismembered, and comletely destroyed alarm clock.

"It's a little late for that..." Hekele muttered, getting back into bed. It was then that Rin sat up and stretched.

"Is it time to get up Hekele-chan?" she asked. Hekele shook her head.

"Nope...some stupid person set the alarm clock to make me mad...INUYASHA!!!" she yelled the last part, hearing a satisfied thud on the other end of the door, followed by an, "oh shit," and then running down the stairs. Only Kagome's stupid hanyou of a boyfriend would be dumb enough to set that damn alarm while she was sleeping in the room. She would get him later...

Kanna sat up and yawned, "What happened? Why were you yelling Hekele?" she asked. Hekele sighed a defeated sigh and got out of bed.

"Inuyasha shall pay for waking me up...he shall pay dearly..." she said, heading to the closet to pick out some clothes for the day. Rin got out of bed as well and shook Kagome.

"Come on Kagome-san, if Hekele-chan, Kanna-chan, and Rin have to get up, then Kagome-san must get up as well," she said. Kagome groaned tiredly but obeyed the little girl. She ruffled her hair and sat up. Hekele went into the bathroom grumpily to change into her attire, while Kanna began to select her clothing for the day. Rin quickly picked out a pair of blue jeans and a pink 'Hello Kitty' shirt that she had thought was cute. Kanna had decided on a pair of pink pants and a white shirt trimmed in pink; it said, "Princess." As soon as Hekele returned in her standard cargo pants and t-shirt, both Rin and Kanna made a mad dash for the bathroom to change. Rin giggled as she made it into the room first and shut the door in Kanna's face.

Within a moment, however, Rin emerged and Kanna went into the room, giving her a fake death glare and trying not to laugh. Rin went back to the bedroom and pounced on Hekele's lap. Kagome had changed into a navy blue mini skirt and a white tank top with navy blue trim around the neckline and arm holes.

Hekele had begun to brush out Rin's hair when Kanna walked back into the room. She sat on the futon with her legs crossed and stared at what Hekele was doing. She was begining to style Rin's hair in a type of braid.

"What type of braid is that Hekele?" she asked. Hekele smiled.

"It's a French braid...want me to do your hair like this when I'm done?" she asked. Kanna nodded.

"Yes please..."

"No problem...Hey Kagome, what are you doing?" Hekele asked, upon seeing Kagome flip through her bedside drawer. Kagome shrugged.

"Just looking for something to help you get back at Inuyasha with that won't resut in me cleaning up his blood from my living room..." she answered. Then her face lit up.

"Perfect...and I think that Kachie, Sango, and Kagura would LOVE to help..."

"What could be taking those girls so long? I heard them moving around up there..." Inuyasha wondered aloud. As far as he knew, he was the only guy that was awake. He was getting very bored.

Suddenly, he heard Shippo and Kohaku yell. This woke up Koga and Sesshoumaru as well.

"What the hell was that?" Koga muttered, rubbing his eyes. Sesshoumaru stared at the stairway with an annoyed expression. It was then that they all heard yelling again. At this, the three all ran up the stairs and towards Souta's room. When they got there, Shippo and Kohaku ran out with terrified looks on their faces and headed down the stairs as fast as they could. This surprised the group greatly. They carefully crept closer to the door, not wanting to encounter whatever had scared the two boys so much. As soon as they were at the door, the girls all appeared from the sides holding something in their hands.

"Eat water canines," Kagura said evilly. With that, the girls began launching the objects at the three boys. They burst on contact, soaking their targets completely. Koga made a mad dash for the stairs as Kohaku and Shippo had done. Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru just stood their in complete shock for a moment.

Hekele smiled, "Oh Inuyasha...I believe you were oh-so-kind as to set that alarm for us...we decided to thank you for your curtousy..." Inuyasha gulped and started running and dodging water balloons. Hekele paused next to Sesshoumaru as she ran out the door.

"Oh, and I owe _you_ for that pillow last night..." she said before chucking a balloon at his chest. Since she was so close, he hadn't had time to dodge. Sesshoumaru glared at her and she smiled.

"You had better run..." he muttered, trying to wring out his shirt. Hekele grinned.

"Oh, I planned on it!" she said, taking off down the stairs. This time, Sesshoumaru didn't stay on the sidelines and watch; he saw two of the balloons in a bucket on the floor and grabbed them. This time, it was war.

He calmly walked down the stairs and towards the living room, where he heard everyone running and screaming. His target wasn't Hekele though, or even Rin. His target was his younger brother. If that stupid idiot hadn't activated that alarm the previous night, then Sesshoumaru wouldn't be soaked to the bone in the name of the girls' retaliation. Yes...Inuyasha would not expect HIM to go after him...

Sesshoumaru entered the room stealthily, dodging balloons left and right until he saw his target. He moved in for the kill silently. Once he was a good five feet behind Inuyasha, he launched the first balloon. It hit in the back of his head.

"Holy shit!!! Who the hell-" Inuyasha never got the rest out; he was hit in the face by Sesshoumaru's other water balloon and he fell onto the couch, bewildered.

"Next time, do _not_ annoy the girls, and we may just have a _peaceful_ morning for _once_...idiot..." he muttered. Everyone but Inuyasha burst out laughing.

Suddenly, the group heard snoring. They looked around until they found the source. Miroku was still fast asleep on his futon.

Sango walked up to him and held out her last water balloon above his head. She smirked, and dropped it. It burst on contact, awakening the monk. He yelped and jumped up. He stared at the group, which was now laughing uncontrollably, and then at Sango, who was standing above him and grinning.

"Morning...sleep well?" Miroku stared at her as though she had grown a third arm.

"I was...until a second ago..."

"Oh yeah? That's good to hear...what were you dreaming about?"

Miroku grinned, "I was dreaming about how many children we are going to have once we are married..."

Sango made a face, "I don't know what your thinking...I told you that all I wanted was one kid..."

"But...-" Miroku never got to protest, his attention was caught by the gaping eyes that were staring at him and Sango. Everyone except for Hekele, Sesshoumaru, and Kohaku were staring at them as though they were insane.

"What's with you guys?" Sango asked, confused.

Kagome was the first to speak, "You two are getting married?"

Inuyasha's mouth was hanging open, "When did this happen?"

"When is it going to be?"

"How did he propose?"

"Did he twist your arm into it?"

"Were you feeling ok when you answered him?"

"Was he feeling ok when he asked you?"

"Are you going to have a ceremony?"

"A reception?"

"Can we help?"

"Where are you taking her on your honeymoon?"

"Miroku...I never knew you had it in you to pick ONE girl!"

The couple was bombarded with questions, but only Miroku was paying attention. Sango's mind was elsewhere. Her thoughts were voiced a moment later.

"So _that's_ what I forgot to tell everybody..."

**Me**: Wow...I can't believe I did that...it's record timing for a chapter of this length people!

**Kachie**: Now for the epilogue...which is going to be Sango and Miroku's wedding!

**Sango**: It is going to be a cross between a traditional Japanese wedding and a modern Christain wedding.

**Kagome**: And all us older girls get to be bride's maids!!! Kanna is going to be a junior maid, and Rin is going to be a

flower girl!!! This is going to be soooo fun!!!

**Kagura**: So...I get to be involved too?!? Thanks!!! Where is the ceremony going to be Sango?

**Sango**: In the Feudal Era...

**Me**: Ok, ok, let's work out the details later ladies...for now, we need to make some announcements...

**Kachie**: Oh yeah! Hekele decided that instead of doing one sequel, she's going to do one sequel from each couple's

point of veiw! She'll write a chapter from one couple's POV, then she'll write ANOTHER chapter, in

ANOTHER STORY for a different couple.

**Kagome**: So, that means, that each couple will have their own story, but she'll alternate between chapters.

**Kagura**: In other words, once she's done with all the chapter ones, then she'll start weriting all the chapter twos...so all

are in the same place.

**Me**: It'll all be basically the same story, except that each couple is going to have difficulties to deal with. And each

difficulty will add into the big picture.

**Kachie**: Remmenber, Hekele's father is still on the loose, and I was only expelled for a year...so we have to deal with

that stuff sooner or later...and the other couples will have things to deal with too...but those are gonna be

secret for now...Muahahahahaha...

**Kagome**: The sequels will all take place between this chapter and the next one. Sango's wedding is going to take

place one year after this chapter.

**Kagura**: And as you know...a lot can happen in one year...just look at all of us and how far we've all come...

**Me**: So I will write the epilogue, which will also serve as the last chapter for ALL of my sequels. However, at the end

of my sequels, I will add more detail about the past year from the specific couple's POV. Sound interesting?

**Kachie**: R&R and tell her what you think...she REALLY wants to try out this idea...


	19. Epilogue: The First of the Vows

**Kagome's Song and Inuyasha's Love**

Ok…I know that I have a lot of explaining to do for my long and unproductive absence, so here goes…

The problem is…I am now on the volleyball team at my school. This takes the time that I use in the evenings to update away from me. Also, our team has had four ALL DAY tournaments to deal with and one evening game that lasted for a few hours as well, and that took away my prime writing days…Saturdays…

Not that I can only blame volleyball for my long absence, some of it was laziness, and still even some of it was the fact that my mother's computer broke down for a month and I couldn't write when I went over to her house either. So, many things have contributed to this lack of updates. So I'd like to formerly apologize to all of my faithful reviewers, and even those who don't review, because this wasn't fair to you. I am sorry.

Ok, this is going to be Sango and Miroku's wedding, which is going to be a cross between a traditional Shinto wedding, (which Kachie helped me with _immensely_,) and a Christian wedding. That way, there get to be bridesmaids and groomsmen and stuff! Also, I can make it a bit longer that way.

I will be adding bits and pieces of what has happened over the past year in there as well, to…_entice_…you guys to read my multiple sequels…I won't give too much away though…just because I still have to formulate most of it in my head…all I have are the basics…

Now, I have had reviewers both like and dislike my idea of multiple sequels. The reason I wanted to do it this way is so that it would be easier for me to focus on the SPECIFIC couples. As you know, I have trouble focusing on any specific pairing. If I have separate stories, then it is easier for me to focus on whom I WANT to focus on. Ok? Is that a good enough reason? I thought so…but hey, you still have time to try to change my mind if you must…

This chapter is dedicated to my buddy Barbara…you know who you are chika…thanks for letting me vent via e-mail and thanks for your advice…this final chappie goes out to you!!! All hail Jersey!!! (You know what I mean! -!)

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the idea for the damn plot…

**Inuyasha**- Duh…if you owned us…we'd all be dead by now!

**Sesshoumaru**- We did die idiot…and I still love her…so what's your problem?

**Inuyasha**- She started it! She MADE us die!!!

**Sesshoumaru**- And? She wrote in for Midoriko to bring us back to life and that

we all won and that the damn monk and the slayer are going to

marry…so I'd say it turned out just fine…stop being a wimp!

**Inuyasha**- I am NOT a wimp you stupid ball of fluff!

**Me**- OK! Now…back to the disclaimer…I own nothing…

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&

**Epilogue: The First of the Vows**

Sango sighed, as she turned in front of Kagome's giant mirror for the hundredth time in the past fifteen minutes. It was her wedding day. She could not believe that the day had finally come…or had even come at all.

Sango was wearing a white wedding kimono trimmed in gold and embroidered elaborately with golden roses. She also wore a golden Obi and golden sandals, which Kagome had bought her as an early wedding gift. She looked lovely.

Kagome and Hekele walked into the small hut with some utensils to do Sango's hair and make-up with just then. They were all smiles.

"Sango…you look amazing…I bet Miroku is going to drop his jaw when he sees you!" Kagome teased. Sango blushed and looked at the floor, attempting to hide the offending pink that had graced her cheeks. She hoped that Miroku liked the kimono; she had kept it hidden because she wanted to surprise him on their wedding.

It was her mother's wedding kimono. She had found it in the wreckage of the demon slayer village on one of her trips with Miroku and Kohaku over the past year; the three had decided to begin repairs and hopefully bring the town back to life and attract newcomers.

Sango had never been so happy in her entire life when Miroku had suggested the idea. She had wanted to do so anyways, but had figured against it because of their wedding and all the planning that it involved.

When she had found the dress in the rubble of her former hut, it was hidden away inside of her mother's old trunk. It had been torn in a few places and was very dirty, but she had kept it anyways. As soon as she had shown it to Kagome, Hekele, and Kachie, the three had immediately recommended repairing it and using it as her own wedding kimono. Sango hadn't thought that it was possible to repair the old thing, but Kagome's mother and her three friends had persisted until it was as good as new. When Sango had seen the finished product, she had cried.

"You guys…I want to thank you again…for all you've done…" she said. Hekele, who was currently putting Sango's hair into small corn-rolls, smiled.

"It's no problem…really…we had a ball!" she said happily. Kagome nodded as she began to do Sango's make-up.

"We enjoy assisting in special occasions…see? We're taking care of you right now!" she piped. Sango laughed.

"Yeah…I guess you are, huh? Ow! Hekele, must those be so tight?" she muttered the last part.

"Yup…you don't want them falling out do you?" she said. Sango muttered a 'no' and piped down about the mild pain being implemented into her scalp.

"You two look beautiful. Those kimonos were a great choice…" she said instead, admiring her two bride's maids.

They both were wearing dark blue two-toned kimonos. Hekele and the rest of the regular bridesmaids' other tone was silver, and they had silver trimming as well. Kagome, being the maid of honor, had gold as the second tone and trimming. Rin, who was the flower girl, had a soft pink kimono and lavender trimming.

The kimono's had all been made in Kagome's era, since Kagome's mother had pointed out to Sango that she could have more options and that the kimonos could be made faster as well. Heck, half of the wedding was arranged in the other era…

Kagome beamed at her friend. "Yeah…maybe…hey, where are Kachie and Kagura? And Kanna and Rin? They should be in here helping us!" she asked. Hekele rolled her eyes.

"Kachie is putting on her make-up, Kagura is in there with her enforcing my ruling that she had better put on the make-up or die, Rin is greeting the guests like the adorable munchkin she is, and Kanna is probably talking to _Kohaku_…" she said slyly. Sango grinned.

"I still can't believe that those two got so close…of all the people…YOU and Sesshoumaru was even more predictable than those two…" she said to her friend as she finished with the tiny painful rolls and moved on to putting the rest of her hair into a bun. Hekele beamed.

"Yes…my protector…" she said happily. Kagome sighed.

"Ok…I'm done Sango…want some help Hekele?" she asked. Hekele shook her head.

"Nope…I'm just about finished…hey, could you go grab the rest of the girls? We need to get out there soon…" she requested. Kagome gave her a nod and went outside the hut.

Within a moment, Hekele was finished with Sango's hair. She showed her to the mirror that she and Kagome had brought back with them on their last trip through the well.

"Well, wha'cha think?" she asked. Sango smiled.

"It's great…thank you…"

"Anytime…now, for the checklist!"

Sango smiled, they had been through this little ritual before, "Ok."

"Something old?"

Sango touched her kimono, "Check."

"Something new?"

"Check, check," Sango declared as she showed off her shoes.

"Something borrowed?"

Sango lifted a gold pendant in the shape of a heart that she had borrowed from Kachie, just for the occasion, "Check."

"Something blue?"

Sango smiled and took from her kimono's sleeve pocket a small square of blue fabric that had been left over from the making of her friends' kimonos, "Check."

Hekele grinned as Kagome returned into the room with Kachie, Kagura, Kanna, and Rin, "Ok folks…let's get this girl's show on the road!"

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&

Meanwhile, with Miroku and the other guys:

"I can't believe that I'm actually getting married…" Miroku said in a daze. He had been like this for the past few hours, and his groomsmen were getting a bit fed up with it.

"Well, _we_ can't believe that she actually said yes to a lecher like you…I mean, come on…she had a _lord_ ask her, and she turned around and said 'yes' to _you_…I find it odd…" Inuyasha said, feeding off of the former monk's negative energy. The atmosphere was just too happy for him, plus, he was preoccupied with something else…

Sesshoumaru and Koga seemed interested. "She was proposed to by a _lord_ and she turned him down? When did this happen?" Koga asked. Sesshoumaru merely nodded. He too seemed a bit annoyed with the joyous essence floating about in the air.

Inuyasha grinned, "Oh, this was _way_ back before Hekele joined the group even. This guy rode up looking for Sango, asking her to exterminate a demon for his boss. Then his boss, the _lord_, rode up and asked her. He recognized her from when her family had exterminated a demon a few years back and started confessing his love for her and then proposed…it was great…" Inuyasha said, recalling the fond memory. He had thought the entire thing rather amusing. Miroku hadn't.

"I do not believe that it was all that great, Inuyasha; Sango seemed very torn during those few days…" Miroku said slowly. Inuyasha grinned.

"Oh, I don't know why, either she stays with a group of idiots and follows a perverted monk around hoping that he returned the same feelings she had for him, even though he gropes every woman he sees, _or_ she stays put in one place with a guaranteed happy life, descent future, and where she knew she was appreciated…she chose you…why? I wonder sometimes…" Inuyasha retorted.

Koga was trying not to laugh and Sesshoumaru was genuinely pondering why Sango had in fact stayed with the group. Now it was no question, for she knew of Miroku's feelings for her…but then she didn't. Oh well, lucky for the monk she had such deep feelings for him then too, eh?

"Well, she knew deep down what she wanted and wished to pursue it. I am only glad that 'it' was me…" Miroku said gracefully. Inuyasha scowled…there was no good way to make fun of that one…

Sesshoumaru stepped up to the plate and decided to keep the jeering on a moment longer, "Are you certain she merely didn't wish to sit back and allow you to deflower every woman you saw?" Inuyasha gave him a proud look and Sesshoumaru decided it best to take it as a compliment from his younger sibling.

Miroku rolled his eyes…right when he had thought that he had outsmarted them… "Hey, for the record, I never deflowered anyone…" he defended. Inuyasha smirked.

"Yeah…cuz Sango wouldn't let you…"

Shippo and Kohaku entered the hut just then. "Hurry it up! The girls are already ready!!! Sheesh! It's time to start the ceremony!!!" Shippo bounced up and down. Kohaku rolled his eyes but nodded. Souta, whom had been picked as one of Miroku's groomsmen, peeked into the room.

"Come on already!!!" he yelled, "Or I'll send Kagome in after you…and you know _she'll_ get you out, one way or another…"

At this Inuyasha cringed…the last thing he wanted was to have that rosary put back on…and if Kagome even pretended to connect him with the slightest error in their friends' wedding…she would find a way to put him under fifty feet of dirt before he could say 'shit'…

"…Let's get out there…shall we?" he said apprehensively.

"I always knew Kagome had you on a leash…" Koga smirked. Before Inuyasha retaliated, Kachie burst into the room with an annoyed look on her face.

"Guys! Get your butts out here before I nail them in place!!! And you Koga! Were you the hold-up?!? You were the one I heard talking!!! And why are you insulting the other people in the wedding?!? My god! Can't you and Inuyasha NOT fight for once?! Argh!!!" and with that, she threw up her arms and walked out of the hut.

The men just stood in place for a moment in complete shock…that had to be the second time that had happened to Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru, and Miroku, for they recalled Hekele's first tantrum, but for Koga the random outburst was rather unusual, not to mention scary…

Inuyasha forced a grin, and he began to slink out of the hut as he spoke, "You were saying something about ME being on a leash?" Koga growled and darted after Inuyasha, nearly knocking Shippo, Kohaku, and Souta over.

It was then that Hekele poked her head into the hut, "Sorry about Kachie…I think she's irritated that she can't wear her usual make-up…but seriously, hurry up! We want this ceremony to get under-way!!!" Hekele removed her head from the hut, earning an eye roll from the entire group.

The boys exited the hut only to see all the girls, (minus Sango of course; she was still in the hut so that Miroku wouldn't see her yet,) dressed in their elegant kimonos.

Their jaws dropped. The boys had never seen them in such lovely clothing before… The girls' hair was done up as well, and they also wore a small amount of make-up. They looked positively beautiful. When Kachie had had her little tantrum, no one had even noticed how dressed up and lovely she was. Despite the fact that the boys knew that the girls would be all decked out and fancy, they were still in a bit of awe at the beauties before them.

A few of the boys blushed slightly as they eyed their loves, but they didn't fail to notice that they were being surveyed as well.

The men were wearing midnight black kimonos that were embroidered with silver twigs and leaves; Inuyasha's done with a golden thread instead. The girls were in biscuit land…

Inuyasha smiled and walked up to Kagome, embracing her lovingly, "You look beautiful…" Kagome smiled slightly and blushed at his antics. She laid her head on his shoulder.

"And you don't look too bad yourself…" she replied.

Hekele, from where she was standing next to Sesshoumaru and Rin, rolled her eyes, "Come on you two! Play, 'Flirt-stupidly-through-compliments,' later…we have a wedding to get over with!!!"

Inuyasha and Kagome blushed a bit but parted and headed to where the wedding party was to be lining up. The nervous groom and the rest of the party followed them.

Hekele was about to do the same when Sesshoumaru lightly pulled her to him and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. She looked at him questioningly and his lips curled into a soft smile, "You look outstanding in that kimono…"

Hekele smiled a bit and tried to hide her blush, "You're just trying to get me into trouble because I wouldn't let Inuyasha and Kagome play that game…" She said it accusingly, but with a smile. Sesshoumaru smirked slightly as he led her after the group, whom Rin had followed hurriedly.

"Perhaps…but perhaps you are just a bit self-conscious…"

"Stop it! I don't feel like playing your mind games right now!"

"Mind games? Whatever are you speaking of?"

"Stop it!"

"Stop what?"

"Kagome!!! Sesshoumaru won't leave my dwindling sanity alone!!!" Hekele called out to her friend, who rolled her eyes.

"He's not _my_ boyfriend, so he's not _my_ problem…enjoy!" Kagome said cheerfully as Miroku made his way up the isle to await the wedding party and Sango.

Sesshoumaru smirked at the young miko, who in return grinned at him. The past year had changed a lot of things, and though Sesshoumaru would be the last person to admit it…everyone had formed stronger friendships with each other, including himself.

Kagome and Inuyasha were standing at the front of the line, Hekele and Sesshoumaru directly behind them, Kachie and Kouga were next, and Kagura and Souta followed them. Rin and Shippo brought up the rear; Rin turned behind her and trotted over to Sango's 'dressing room'.

"Sango-chan…it is all right to come out now…Miroku-san is at the front," she said sweetly. Within moments, Sango came outside of the hut.

"Thank you Rin-chan…I am so nervous…" the older girl confessed. Rin grabbed her hand and led her to the back of the wedding party, which was beginning to move.

"Don't worry Sango…this is going to go just fine…" Kagome whispered as Inuyasha led her down to the front of the Shrine. Hekele gave her a similar confidence.

"Sango, you have worked so hard for this day…and we've all worked hard with you…it'll be fine…besides…worse case scenario, we'll have to resurrect the monk after he drops dead because of how good you look!" she said as Sesshoumaru led her after the others. Kagura just gave her a thumbs up before Souta led her out, and Rin and Shippo gave Sango two big hugs before picking up their respective items and heading out, Shippo following Rin as she tossed Sakura petals everywhere.

_Ok Sango…you can do this…all you have to do is walk up that isle…Oh Kami…I never actually knew how scary this was…I…don't think I can go up there all by myself…all those people…_ Her jumbled thoughts were interrupted when she felt two arms link with each of hers.

"You didn't forget about us did you?" Kohaku joked. Kanna was on the other side of Sango, grinning at the bride.

"…We thought you deserved, and needed, someone to give you away at the alter…so…Kohaku volunteered…and since I can't just walk up that big long isle alone…I volunteered too!" she chirped. Sango looked at the two, relieved that they hadn't gone ahead of her as was planned. She sighed as they both began to lead her down the isle. She whispered to them her gratitude.

"…Thanks guys…"

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&

Miroku looked up to see Sango being led to the front of the shrine by Kohaku and Kanna. He was relieved that she hadn't had to go down the isle alone…he had been terrified himself when he had. It was an odd sort of fear, it was as if the guests were judging him…and it was unnerving.

It was then that Miroku noticed Sango in all her glory. She had never looked so radiant in all the many times he had seen her. Her skin seemed to glow as though she was some kind of beacon of light…some kind of saint. Her eyes sparkled and shone with life and happiness, and Miroku was proud to note that he had put a good portion of it there. Her hair was done in a messy type of bun with what the girls called 'corn-rolls' on the top of her head, and her kimono…oh…her kimono was astounding! It looked as though it were made in the heavens for Kami's loveliest angel…and the woman wearing it did nothing to curb that thought!

When Sango, Kohaku, and Kanna reached the alter at the front of the Shrine, they bowed respectfully before the Lady Kaede, whom had lovingly accepted the task of performing the ceremony for two of the young people she had grown so fond of. She prayed that she would have the honor again soon from her other young friends as well…

The three parted, each moving to their respected spots. Sango joined Miroku at the isle and took his hand when he offered it. Sango blushed a bit when she saw Miroku's broad smile.

Once he had the opportunity, Miroku whispered to her, "You look incredible Sango-chan, never have you shone with such beauty…" Sango's blush deepened on reflex as he said it.

Lady Kaede smiled at the two young adults before her. Yes, she was overjoyed to have the honor of performing this ceremony, but she would reflect on how much it meant to her _after_ it was over with.

(AN: Ok, now that we are into the actual ceremony, things are gonna get hairy…my sources were vague on the actual ceremony, so, if any of you have ever been to a Shinto ceremony, or know better than I how one works…I am very sorry to you as well. Now…I do not understand the purification service, so I am going to bluff my way through it…sorry again…)

Lady Kaede dutifully began the purification ceremony of all that was present, though, since all members of both parties were demons or demonesses except for Souta, it was mostly for show and tradition. When Kaede chanted, she made certain that the spell was harmless to her young friends, and when she spread the sacred herbs, she made certain to miss the members of the wedding party.

With the purification finished, she proceeded to speak to the guests, "My dear friends, ye are present to witness the binding marriage of our good friend Houshi Miroku, and our beloved Taijya Sango. May they now present their vows of faithfulness…"

Miroku stood then, lightly pulling Sango up at his side, took both her hands in his own, and began his vows, "…Sango-chan, you and I have had an amazing journey leading to this day. Our friendship, and relationship, have endured many arguments, though most, I must admit, were the result of my…uh…_habit_…" Miroku paused long enough for the villagers and the wedding party to stop chuckling before continuing, "We have been through so many hardships, and even in death did we not part. In life, no matter the circumstances, parting with you would be the biggest mistake that I could ever make. I hope you understand that…" Miroku heard the distinct 'awe' from the women present and smiled a bit when Sango nodded her head contently at his words.

Sango then spoke, "Miroku…you are an incredible man, _the_ most incredible man that I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. What you say of our long journey here, and your _habits_ are true, but I can't see myself as anyone else's bride, no matter what their looks, character, _or_ level of nobility. You are the only man that I could ever love and cherish as I do…thank you for choosing me as your own…" Miroku nodded to her lovingly in response to her touching words.

Lady Kaede smiled at the two and then said her piece, "Ye must now commence the San-San-Kudo ritual…"

(AN: San-San-Kudo 'Three Times Three Exchange' of nuptial cups filled with ceremonial sake which is drunk by the bride and groom.)

Sango and Miroku proceeded to the ceremonial table behind the Lady Kaede and began drinking the sake in the ritualistic manner. When they were finished, Lady Kaede motioned for mikos to bring out trays with cups of sake out for the guests and wedding party. The mikos were selected from neighboring villages due to the lack of them in this one. Once everyone was finished, the mikos took the cups and trays back into the Shrine.

Shippo was then called up to present the wedding rings before Sango and Miroku. Miroku playfully ruffled his hair a bit as he took one of the rings and presented it to Sango. He took her slender hand in his and gracefully slid the ring onto her finger. Likewise, she did the same to him. When they were finished, Lady Kaede spoke once more.

"I pronounce thee husband and wife. Ye may kiss the bride Miroku…but don't over do it please…" she said with a bit of joking in her voice. The villagers present and the wedding party let out a genuine laugh at the old miko's joke as the bride and groom kissed. And no, kiddies, Miroku didn't over do it…

&#&#&##&#&#&#&

At the reception, three hours later:

Miroku lovingly twirled Sango as they danced to the traditional music that was being played. Everyone was having a great time; even Shippo was dancing with Rin, though neither was that good at it yet. Out of sheer boredom, Kagura was dancing with Souta for the third time other than the required first dance. Souta was getting used to having the older girl at his side over the past few hours, but he was still a bit freaked out when SHE asked HIM to dance.

_Note to self: find poor Kagura a better dancing partner…_ he thought to himself. Kagura didn't seem to mind his distant look though; she was already scanning the crowd for a more suited partner…

Kohaku fidgeted slightly from his seat on the sidelines. He wanted to ask Kanna to dance, but he was nervous as all get out.

_Ok…it's not like she's going to be mean about it if she decides to decline…so why am I so nervous…we're just friends…_ he thought to himself. Kanna herself was sitting on the other end of the dance floor, looking to be a mixture of bored and excited, which Kohaku found rather entertaining. He caught her gaze and blushed slightly.

_What's my problem? We've already danced together once…of course…we kind of **had** to…but still…_ he reasoned. He stood up from where he was seated and slowly walked around the dance floor to where she was. Once he was a few feet from her, Kanna smiled at him, causing him to blush.

"Umm, Kanna? Would you like dance…with me?" he asked quietly. Kanna blushed a bit, which Kohaku took to be a good sign, and nodded. Kohaku gave her his hand and politely helped her up and led her to the dance floor. After a few songs, they decided to part.

"Thank you for the dance Kohaku-kun…" Kanna said sweetly. Kohaku blushed once more.

"No prob-" he was interrupted when Kanna stood on the tips of her toes and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Just as quickly as it had happened, it was over, and Kanna was bouncing away, red as a tomato. Kohaku saw as Kagura slugged her in the arm while grinning.

Bright red himself, Kohaku just stood there, stunned, "Well…I guess _that_ went well…"

Sesshoumaru and Hekele found themselves on the dance floor for the sixth time since their first dance that evening. Sesshoumaru could tell that Hekele was having the time of her life, which made him happy, especially considering all that had taken place over the past year. He spun her around once and then, upon seeing her surprised smile, raised her hand to his lips and placed on it a gentle kiss.

Hekele smiled at his actions, she couldn't help but love him, and the fact that he had been more openly affectionate towards her as of late made her feel all the more loved as well. She blushed on reflex when he kissed her hand, for though she liked it when he was open about his feelings, she still wasn't quite used to it…

Kachie and Koga decided to sit out a few songs, since they had danced to most of them. Kachie leaned on Koga's shoulder.

"I had no idea that you could dance Koga…where on earth did you learn?" she asked mischievously. Koga grinned.

"I _am_ a prince you know. Just because I live in a cave with a bunch of wolves doesn't mean that I don't have any class…" he replied. Kachie narrowed her eyes.

"Ms. Higurashi taught you didn't she?"

Koga sweat-dropped, "Is it that obvious?"

Kachie smiled at him, "No, not really, but the fact that you spoke as though you _practiced_ your answer to that question gave it away. Did she teach Inuyasha as well?" Koga smirked.

"No…Kagome taught him…after he tripped a couple of times and broke Hekele's game system…You could hear the yelling from a mile away…I'm sure of it…"

Kachie paused, "Was that the day that she stayed home sick? About six months ago?" Koga nodded.

"She was in the middle of playing her new game too…she was so pissed…she blurted out what happened to Kagome the instant she got home…"

Kachie rolled her eyes, "Oh yeah…I had detention that day…" Koga gave her a squeeze and then looked at her once more.

"Why did you have detention…you never told us what you did to get in trouble," he asked. Kachie growled.

"And I _still_ ain't tellin'!" she grounded out. It wasn't her fault that she got the chemicals wrong during the chemistry experiment…her stupid partner had told her what to mix together after all…

Koga rolled his eyes, deciding to drop the subject, and stood back up. He extended his hand out to her, "Shall we get back out there now?" Kachie grinned as she took his hand.

"Sure!"

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&

Inuyasha paced back and forth a bit, nervous. He had to get this over with. No, that was the wrong way to put it…he _wanted_ to get this over with. He had to talk to Kagome. But…he was so scared! Yes, Inuyasha, the mighty hanyou who fears nothing, was scared.

"Inuyasha? Are you all right?" Kagome said, making the hanyou jump in surprise. He had been so deep in thought that he hadn't even noticed her coming.

"Uhh…yea, I'm ok…" he said 'brilliantly'. Kagome smiled.

"Inuyasha, what's the matter? I can tell that you're hiding something…" she pressed.

Deciding to get it over with, Inuyasha gave in, "Kagome…can I talk to you?"

Alarmed, Kagome gave him a concerned look, "Of course Inuyasha…what's wrong?"

Not wanting Kagome to get the wrong idea, he spoke quickly, "Nothing's wrong…promise, I just need to ask you some-"

"Kagome!!! There you are! Sango is getting ready to throw her bouquet! How would it look if her maid of honor wasn't there to try and catch it? Let's go!" Hekele interrupted, pulling Kagome away from Inuyasha, who shot the girl a glare.

"Ahh! Ok, ok! I'm coming! Inuyasha, I'll be right back!!!" Kagome yelled as she was dragged away. Inuyasha continued to glare at Hekele, who merely grinned at him once Kagome was out of sight.

"Don't worry…I'm just setting up the mood…It'll be more fun to watch her reaction if she's already blushing…" she said slyly.

Inuyasha growled, "You are cruel. I had just worked up my nerves to ask her."

"Ah, stop your whining, once you've got the guts, they don't leave ya. Got it Dog-boy? Besides, the girl who catches the flowers is supposedly the one who gets married next. What could be more special than asking her right after she catches the bouquet?" Hekele reasoned. Inuyasha paused, he hadn't thought of that. It sure would be interesting to see the surprise on Kagome's face when it happened…

"Hey…wait a second…what makes you think she'll catch it?" he asked suspiciously. Hekele grinned.

"You'll see…"

Inuyasha shook his head, "Evil…"

"Why thank you!"

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&

"Ok everybody! Get ready!" Sango called to the women behind her. She heard the giggles of her friends, who had taken up the front row. She waited for the count of three, and tossed the bouquet behind her.

&#&#&

Hekele saw the flowers in mid air and nodded to Kagura, Kanna, Kachie, and Rin. When the bouquet seemed to head in Hekele and Rin's direction, Kanna, Kagura, and Kachie rushed towards it, 'accidentally' bumping into Kagome in the process. Kagome was knocked onto Hekele and the bouquet sailed right into her arms, considering that Rin had dived out of the way in order to keep from being squashed.

The six friends sat in a heap on the ground for a second before bursting out in laughter. Kagome held the bouquet up high with a triumphant grin for everyone to see. Hekele gave her a light smack upside the head.

"Ya didn't have to flatten me! Everyone! Up, now!" she yelled playfully, earning a laugh from everyone. Sango walked up to the tangle and shook her head.

"A bit competitive aren't we?" she joked, knowing full well what had taken place. She stepped aside as Kachie stood up, having been the lucky person on top. Everyone else got up, leaving Hekele on the ground and Rin dusting herself off. Sesshoumaru just looked at the two and sighed. They were completely hopeless at times…

He stepped up to Hekele and held out his hand, "Care for some assistance?" Hekele smiled and accepted the offer.

"Yes please…I think they squished my bones…" she replied. Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes as he pulled her up.

"It appears your little plan backfired…" he whispered to her. Hekele grinned and hugged him.

"Not really, I just got banged up in the process…now let's just hope that your brother doesn't get cold feet…" she whispered back as Inuyasha led Kagome by the hand away from the group.

Sango grinned at the sight and turned to Ms. Higurashi, "Is the video camera ready?" Kagome's mother just smiled.

"Yes, it is."

Sango nodded to her and then spoke to everyone, "Ok…time to see the _other_ reason we all came here tonight!" Everyone laughed and watched as the bride, groom, and wedding party, (including Ms. H.,) slowly made their way to where the hanyou had taken Kagome. Thank God they were all down wind…

Kagome's grandfather looked at the Lady Kaede and sighed, "You do realize that it is taking everything in me _not_ to go after them and _not_ to stop Inuyasha from taking my little Kagome from me, right?"

Kaede smiled, "Be at ease my friend, Inuyasha will take good care of her…and she isn't so little anymore…she has grown so much in the past two years…I think she is ready for this…"

Mr. Higurashi gave a half smile, "Oh, I know she is, but I don't know if I am ready to watch my granddaughter finish growing up quite yet…"

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&

"Inuyasha? Where are we going?" Kagome asked as they walked through the forest. Inuyasha actually smiled.

"To the place where we first met…" he said contently. Kagome smiled a bit.

"And why are we going there?" she asked slyly. Inuyasha picked up on her game and decided to play along.

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"Cuz I said so."

Kagome laughed, "That's a rotten reason Inuyasha…" Inuyasha smiled.

"So? It's still a reason."

Kagome made a face but gave an agreeable nod, "That's true I guess…" The two continued to walk until they reached the God Tree. When they stopped, Inuyasha surprised Kagome by picking her up and hopping onto one of the lower branches. Once Kagome was sitting down and stable, she spoke.

"I've been a demon for a whole year now Inuyasha…I could have gotten up here on my own…" she stated, but she did so with a smile. Inuyasha shrugged.

"Force of habit I guess, you don't mind do you?" he asked, suddenly a bit afraid of bruising Kagome's independence. She had made it perfectly clear that she had wanted to become as strong as she could, and as independent as she could, using her new demonic powers. He wouldn't want to make her feel bad right before he asked her his question now would he?

Kagome gave a content sigh and leaned on his shoulder, "Nope…not really…It was sweet of you." Inuyasha gave a mental sigh of relief. He had been known over the past year to have been a little over protective of Kagome, and it had annoyed her quite a bit. Inuyasha was relieved that he hadn't started another argument on the subject.

"So…Inuyasha? What was it that you wanted to talk about?" Kagome asked, breaking the silence. Inuyasha sighed, he had to go through with it now…and he prayed for good karma.

"Umm…well…I wanted to ask you something…" he said, trying to piece how he would ask her in his mind. It was easy to figure it out ahead of time…but when it came down to the actual question, his nerves had erased all his plans.

"Well…ok, ask away then!" Kagome said cheerfully, noticing how out of it he seemed. Inuyasha smiled slightly. He wrapped his arm around her and gave her a little squeeze.

"Well, we've been through a lot, haven't we? Shard hunting, Naraku, other evil demons…evil half brothers…" Inuyasha paused when a muffled growl reached his ears, followed by something that sounded surprisingly like a giggle. _So…they're nearby are they…_ "And then after all _that_, we had to deal with even _more_ evil demons, most of them my evil half brother…" Inuyasha tried desperately to hide a smirk when another muffled growl was heard, this time followed by a clunk to the head and even more repressed giggles. This time, Kagome caught on that they were being watched and decided to play along.

"Inuyasha, if you are trying to ask me to purify Sesshoumaru the next time you two argue, I don't think that Hekele would be too happy with me…" she said slyly. Hekele must have been doing a good job of keeping Sesshoumaru's temper under control, because they didn't even hear a sound after _that_ comment…

Inuyasha couldn't help but laugh, "Naw…I'm just messin' with ya…even _he's_ not that bad…but…like I said…you and I've been through a lot, right?" he asked, becoming serious as he continued to get back on track to what he had been saying. _Ironically, knowing that those two are here to keep me from chickening out is actually helping…But couldn't they have at least **told** me that they were gonna keep me on a tight tether?!?!_

Kagome nodded to Inuyasha, "Yeah…and besides all of the dangerous stuff, _we_ fought more than enough times to make up for it…" She smiled though, as if teasing Inuyasha.

Inuyasha gave a small growl, "Hey, am I gonna take the blame for all those petty arguments to my grave, or are you going to keep reminding me that I'm an idiot?"

"Both, but don't worry…you're my favorite idiot anyway!" Kagome laughed. Inuyasha pouted for a moment, but then smiled._ At least she's in a good mood…_

"Well, whatever…you do realize that you are making it very hard for me to be serious, don't you?" he said. It was getting too difficult to make the whole thing romantic…especially with 'Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dumb' spying on the two. But Inuyasha _could_ have fun messing with her mind as he popped his question…

"And what is so serious that you would drag me away from the party to talk about? What couldn't wait?" Kagome pressed. Inuyasha smirked.

"Oh…it's something big. Something that could change our lives forever…" he said sarcastically. Kagome rolled her eyes at him.

"Yeah right…C'mon, just tell me so that we can get back to the party…puh-lease?" she asked.

Inuyasha grinned, "Well, big this news is. Perhaps ready to hear it, you are not!" Inuyasha was trying to hide his smirk. Hekele had forced him to sit through the whole 'Star Wars Trilogy' one night, and right now he was using that freaky green dude's voice…what was his name….Yoda?

Kagome just stared at him, "Inuyasha…you have officially lost your sanity…besides…no news could be so big that _I_ couldn't handle it…"

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Really?"

"Really."

"No going back now…"

"Well duh."

"Last chance…"

"I get the message!"

"I love you and would be honored if you would stand by me forever and be my mate," Inuyasha said, taking out the ring he had purchased and showing it to her.

Kagome just stared in disbelief at the ring. She then looked at Inuyasha and did the same thing. She just stared. In total and complete shock. "Did…did you just…p-p-propose?" she asked, still not believing her ears. Inuyasha nodded slightly, a bit nervous about her reaction. Was complete and utter shock a good thing?

Kagome's eyes welled up with tears of joy, and she, quite literally, pounced on Inuyasha, giving him a tight squeeze. Inuyasha, quite surprised himself, simply returned the embrace lovingly, a look of relief about his features.

"So…" he said as the two sat in the tree, "…is that a yes, or am I going to have to take this ring back to the store with a broken heart?" Kagome instantly stopped hugging him long enough to look him in the face.

"Of course it's a yes! I love you! Why would I say anything else?" she asked. Inuyasha shrugged.

"I dunno, maybe you wanted to cause a scene cuz Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dumb decided to spy on us…" he said, gesturing to the bushes. As if on cue, Hekele and a very disgruntled Sesshoumaru made themselves visible as they walked into the clearing.

"I'm certain that you could have made your proposal without bringing me into the conversation…" Sesshoumaru said. Inuyasha grinned.

"What did Hekele hit you with? You've _actually_ got a bruise on your forehead!" Inuyasha said, pointing to Sesshoumaru's head. Sesshoumaru growled and side-glanced Hekele, who was giving him a sympathetic smile.

"It was a rock, if you must know, and it wasn't Hekele who hit me with it…it was Kagura…damn wench…" he growled, glancing at the bushes. Then, much to Inuyasha and Kagome's horror, the _entire_ wedding party, including Kagome's mother, stepped out of the shadows. And even worse…Kagome's mother had a video camera…and it was on…

"Mom…please tell me that you weren't spying on us while Inuyasha made his proposal…and please tell me that that camera wasn't on either…" Kagome said worriedly. The two hopped down from the tree then, and Kagome's mom gave a slight smile.

"I'm sorry honey…but that would be lying…" she said. Kagome groaned and buried her head into Inuyasha's chest, hoping to hide her embarrassment. Then, Inuyasha lightly slipped the ring onto her finger, making her look up to him in surprise.

"Still willing to stay with me forever…even if we have to deal with **_this_** every stinking minute of every stinking day?" he asked jokingly. Kagome nodded.

"Of course, Inuyasha…I wouldn't have it any other way…" she said with a grin. She leaned up and gave him a light kiss, which he returned lovingly. It was then that Shippo spoke up.

"So…that makes you guys my parents now…right?" he asked. Inuyasha looked at Kagome for a second before nodding.

"Sure…why not?" he said indifferently. Shippo grinned and pounced on the pair, giving them a huge hug.

"So…can I stay up late tonight?" he asked slowly. Kagome laughed and Inuyasha couldn't help but mess up the kit's hair.

"Sure Shippo, you can stay up late…tonight," Kagome replied. Shippo squeezed the two tighter before whispering to them.

"I'm glad you guys are my parents…"

Kagome began stroking his head lightly. Who knew that hers and Inuyasha's union could mean so much to the kit? _Perhaps it's because we're saying that we'll never be apart…he feels more secure…_ she thought.

Kachie looked at the newly engaged and sighed, "Ok love birds…let's get back to the party! C'mon!" Koga laughed at her antics and wrapped an arm around her waist.

"Well? Are you all coming or not? If we stay here much longer, Kaede, Kagome's grandfather, and the villagers are going to think that something went wrong!" he jested. Then Kagome and Inuyasha went pale.

"The…whole…village…knows?" they said in unison. Hekele sweat dropped and hid behind Sesshoumaru.

"Not everyone…I'm sure a few of them are in other villages visiting family members and such…" she called from her hiding spot. Kagura had to jump out of the way as Kagome and Inuyasha began to give chase to the girl. Sesshoumaru even moved out of the way…

Hekele took off for the village with Kagome, Inuyasha, and the others in tow, "I'm sorry!!! I didn't know that you'd get mad about it! I swear!!!"

"Hekele! We are sooooo gonna kick your ass!" Kagome yelled as she and Inuyasha tore after the girl. Sesshoumaru Koga, and Miroku sighed. Then Kagura decided to make things uncomfortable.

"So…which one of you two canines are going to propose next? I mean, 'Mr. No Commitment' over there beat both of you to the punch…that's pitiful enough…" she said lightly. However, the comment received its desired effect. Both Koga and Sesshoumaru turned a bit pale. Koga decided to get both of them out of their current predicament with a brilliant comeback…

"Err…Hey! Wait for us!" When he was no longer in sight, (which only took a few seconds,) the remainder of the group turned to Sesshoumaru, whom had mysteriously disappeared as well.

Miroku then made the one comment concerning his male friends that he had so desperately wanted to make ever since his engagement to Sango, "Chickens…"

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&

**Me**- The End.

**Sesshoumaru**- Good, now go study for your finals…you've been neglecting your studying! I thought that these were important tests!!!

**Me**- They are…but I've been neglecting my reviewers even more…so, I decided to put studying off for another day!

**Kachie**- But you haven't studied at all?!?!?!?!

**Me**- I still have time…

**Kagome**- Your first three exams are tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!

**Me**- Oh shit…dear reviewers…pray for me…

**Kachie**- Pray for me too!!!

**Me**- Ok…you reviewers have one chance to convince me to do alternating chapters instead of different stories…If you send me 20 reviews asking for me to change my mind…then I will do so. I will only accept votes from logged in reviewers…that way no one can review twice…Good Luck…


End file.
